The US foreign politics reminds of the English classical literature, which has recently been so often quoted within the UN, just like through the looking glass. There, the dove of peace is James Mattis, head of the Pentagon, nicknamed Mad Dog, who warned Trump against an even larger attack on Syria. And the main hawk is diplomat Nikki Haley, who threatens Damascus with new strikes.
The one that took place on April 13, was not authorized by the UN Security Council. Washington, London, and Paris decided to make airstrikes on their own, bypassing the pillars of international politics.
A journalist: "Does it violate the UN Charter?"
Vasily Nebenzya, Russian permanent representative to the UN: "Of course".
Vasily Nebenzya hurried to an emergency Security Council meeting called by Russia. Nikki Haley was also in a hurry.
A journalist: "Ambassador, will there be more strikes against Syria?"
Nikki Haley, US permanent representative to the UN: "The time for talk was over, we had to take action, and we did it last night".
The US ambassador to the UN went on to the Security Council hall, leaving in suspense not only journalists but also her British counterpart. Even the British defense secretary Gavin Williamson made it clear that it was enough. Was it?
Karen Pierce, UK permanent representative to the UN: "I have no comments on further strikes".
The UN Secretary-General had to postpone his visit to Saudi Arabia. Antonio Guterres took the same seat from which he had recently announced the return of the cold war. The slightest mistake in the airstrikes against Syria could have brought the world to red lines.
Vasily Nebenzya, Russian permanent representative to the UN: "It was a proven scheme. A provocation, cooked-up charges, a false sentence, and the punishment. Is this the way you want to conduct foreign affairs? It's hooliganism in international relations. It's far from just a misdemeanor, given that key nuclear powers are involved".
China fully supports Russia on this issue.
Ma Zhaoxu, Chinese permanent representative to the UN: "Any hostilities contradict the UN principles, break the fundamental norms of international law and deteriorate international relations. It also creates new aggravating factors preventing the Syrian settlement".
The easing, if not solution, of the situation could be a matter of a day. USA, Great Britain, and France only need to give an order to those fighting the legitimate Syrian authorities. Instead, another encouragement is sent to the terrorists' leaders directly from the Security Council meeting.
Nikki Haley, US ambassador to the UN: "I spoke to the president this morning, and he said if the Syrian regime uses this poisonous gas again, the United States is locked and loaded.' When our president draws a red line, our president enforces the red line".
Being a candidate, Trump thought quite differently. He even mocked at the red lines that Obama drew for Damascus to move them. In November 2015, Trump was autographing his first book "Crippled America" on the ground floor of his tower. Having waited in a long line, we asked Trump about Syria.
A Russian journalist: “Regarding Russian operation in Syria, can Russia and the US act together there?"
Donald Trump: "I think they can and they should act together. I think it will eventually happen".
2.5 years later is compared to the Cuban crisis. Nikki Haley's accusatory tone was there too. October 25, 1962, the US representative Adlai Stevenson addressed the Soviet ambassador Valerian Zorin in the same manner.
Adlai Stevenson: "Do you, Ambassador Zorin, deny that the USSR has placed and is placing medium- and intermediate-range missiles and sites in Cuba? Yes or no? Don’t wait for the translation — yes or no?"
Valerian Zorin: "I am not in an American courtroom, sir, and therefore I do not wish to answer a question that is put to me in the fashion in which a prosecutor does".
A photo of Zorin hangs in our permanent mission to the UN, Manhattan, among the portraits of other former heads of our mission. On the day of that historic dialogue, the current head of the permanent mission, Vasily Nebenzya turned 8 months.
- Are you the same age as the Cuban Crisis?
Vasily Nebenzya: Indeed, I am.
- Do you feel that it's Cuban Crisis 2.0?
-I hope that this is not so. No one would like to repeat the Cuban Crisis. It was prevented literally at the last moment. Once I read some interesting stuff in The New York Times. There were memories of the Cuban Crisis and of how President Kennedy made his decision. He summoned his generals and asked if they could destroy the Soviet Union with a single massive nuclear strike. They said they could. He asked what was at stake. They said 600,000 American lives. Then President Kennedy replied he couldn't do that. And this was the beginning of the solution to the Cuban Crisis.
- Do you think the White House discusses it now?
- I hope that now the issue is different as there still remain sensible people, including in the American military.
The US diplomacy is doing worse, which has been proved by 5 Security Council meetings dedicated to the Salisbury incident and the alleged chemical attack in Eastern Ghouta. In any conversation, Nebenzya's counterparts use the presumption of guilt.
Vasily Nebenzya: It reminds of an English joke: "Sir, you're a fool. Parry!" That's the way they talk to us today.
- Today I have this book with me. It's thin but very important. It's the UN Charter.
- I have a newer edition, but I also have it with me.
- You've mentioned that the UN Charter is actually violated nowadays. Or at least there are attempts to break it. What articles do you exactly mean?
- The UN Charter has a whole set of articles concerning the current situation. Today, many countries said that point 4 of Article 2 is being broken: "All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force." By the way, today, it was very well articulated by the Ambassador of Bolivia.
It's by far the best part of the speech.
Sacha Llorenti, Bolivia's ambassador to the UN: "The empire thinks it is above the world, sure of its exceptionalism. It believes it's above the law, but in reality, it doesn't seek to promote democracy and freedom or counter the proliferation of chemical weapons. It seeks to expand its influence and domination."
Sacha Llorenti's parents were fond of Dostoevsky, which explains his Russian name. Together with Russia, he spent the previous week trying to prevent the airstrikes. Bolivia was voting pointedly independently. Despite the difference in the views of the Trump administration and its allies, for most of them, it's an unattainable luxury.
Sacha Llorenti: "Many of the Western countries side with the US which uses Russia as a foe to solve its internal problems. It doesn't believe in a multipolar world, trying to expand its influence. We do believe in multipolarity and multilateral diplomacy, where each country is protected by the international law".
Though, some of those countries don't mind choosing the path for the US on their own. For example, Great Britain, the secret services of which, as the Russian Ministry of Defense reports, are behind the chemical performance in Eastern Ghouta.
Vasily Nebenzya: "The Skripal case is just another facet of the chemical story. It's not even a chemical story, it's a series called "Let's corner Russia!" I mean that the Salisbury provocation is an attempt to discredit, to delegitimize Russia. That's what we witness now. Not only our role in Syrian chemical settlement is questioned. People question Russia's voting right in the international arena since it covers up for murderer Assad and applies chemical weapons on the territory of a Security Council permanent member state".
All the Security Council permanent member states have the veto power. Russia can't be deprived of it by definition. So, they act underhandedly.
Nikki Haley started to refer to our country as a "regime" for which Vasily Nebenzya have given her a rocket.
Vasily Nebenzya: "If they seek to make us a rogue state, their attempts are doomed to failure. Firstly, they are a limited group of countries pursuing their own interests in the comic sketch they're performing now. The world isn't reduced to those 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 countries which are directly involved. Actually, far fewer states are interested in it".
The US and its allies have prevented the adoption of the Russian resolution to stop the aggression against Syria. In the diplomacy of myths and absurdity, as Vasily Nebenzya put it, the Tomahawk is the most tangible tool.
Valentin Bogdanov and Ivan Utkin for Vesti — News of the Week from New York.
