Suspending Russia from UN Human Rights Council linked to politicizing UN bodies: Egypt

CAIRO – 7 April 2022: Egypt’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Osama Abdel Khalek affirmed that Egypt does not see the draft resolution on suspending Russia from the UN Human Rights Council as being related to the Ukraine crisis, or the principle of the inadmissibility of resorting to armed force or compromising the sovereignty of states, but as being linked to politicizing the UN organs and its specialized agencies.

Abdel Khalek made the remarks during an emergency special session of the UN General Assembly to vote on a draft resolution on suspending Russia from the UN Human Rights Council.

Egypt’s principled and consistent position rejects this approach; as it involves contradicting the purpose for which the organization, its agencies, and organs were established, he said.

It may also lead to refuting its credibility and multilateral international action, Abdel Khalek added.

Egypt considers putting forward this draft resolution a dangerous turning point in the UN path over its lifetime, he noted.

Abdel Khalek stressed that the organization's respect for its charter, rules, procedures, and system of work has strengthened the international community's reliance on it in order to consolidate the international action system; based on rules and mechanisms for the proper management of international relations as well as preserving international peace and security.

This is now under threat, he added.

Egypt expresses deep dissatisfaction with the persistence of double standards, Abdel Khalek said, noting in this regard that less decisive and more lenient decisions have been taken as regards clear human rights violations in the not-distant past.

He noted that Egypt - at the same time - affirmed its full rejection of any grave violations of human rights and relevant states’ legal obligations, and sees it necessary for confronting such violations decisively in accordance with related UN mechanisms.

Russia has been suspended from the United Nations’ leading human rights as a result of the Military operation in Ukraine since last February.

At a meeting of the UN general assembly on Thursday, 93 members voted in favor of the suspension Draft resolution while 24 were against and 58 abstained.

This met the required threshold of a two-thirds majority of the assembly members that vote yes or no, with abstentions not counting in the calculation.

Russia is the first permanent member of the UN security council to have its membership revoked from any UN body.

It is also only the second country to have its membership rights stripped at the human rights council, which was established in 2006. The assembly suspended Libya in 2011 when upheaval in the north African country toppled its longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi.