Moscow Says UN Secretariat-General Cannot Have 'Independent Position' On Referendums

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 06th October, 2022) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cannot have any "independent position," especially on territorial issues, such as recent referendums in the Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics, as well as the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

"First of all, the UN secretary-general cannot have any independent 'position,' especially on territorial issues. According to the (UN) Charter, this post assumes the exercise of functions of the UN chief administrative officer. We pointed this out in the comments of Russia's Permanent Mission to the UN and the official representative of the (Russian) Foreign Ministry," Zakharova said in a statement.

The spokeswoman added that UN secretary-general spokesman Stephane Dujarric spoke during his briefing on October 5 "as if he tried to justify himself."

"However, if you look, we did not hear anything new and encouraging. The biased and unprincipled approach of the (UN) Secretariat to the Ukrainian story was confirmed one more time. We are convinced that this state of affairs must be changed. It does not paint the UN Secretariat and its leader," Zakharova said.

Earlier in September, Guterres said the accession of the four regions to Russia had no legal value and condemned Moscow's actions.