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By Jaya Ramachandran
PARIS (IDN) — Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, has denounced the decision of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to designate the historic centre of Odesa a World Heritage in Danger site.
Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, criticised the designation, saying the only threat to Odesa came from the "nationalist regime in Ukraine".
Viewpoint by Herbert Wulf
This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished with their permission.
Three developments contribute to the fact that 2023 could indeed become India's global political year: India's chairmanship of the G20 countries, interestingly its role in the war in Ukraine, and the increasingly widespread critical view of China.
Viewpoint by Ahmed Adel
This article was published in Blitz, a weekly newspaper with a distinctive difference, established in 2003 and published in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
CAIRO (IDN) — A former US Marine Corps intelligence officer has not only warned that Russia is escalating its special military operation in Ukraine but that this will result in "a slaughter, a massacre" for Ukraine. His statement comes as a lot of speculation is circulating following the appointment of Valery Gerasimov as commander of the overall Ukraine campaign, with the pre-eminent idea being that there was a "reshuffle".
Viewpoint by Jeffrey D. Sachs
This article was published in The Economist and is being republished with the author's permission.
NEW YORK (IDN) — Neither Russia nor Ukraine is likely to achieve a decisive military victory in their ongoing war: both sides have considerable room for deadly escalation. Ukraine and its Western allies have little chance of ousting Russia from Crimea and the Donbas region, while Russia has little chance of forcing Ukraine to surrender. As Joe Biden noted in October 2022, the spiral of escalation marks the first direct threat of “nuclear Armageddon” since the Cuban missile crisis 60 years ago.
By António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General
The following are extensive excerpts from the UN Chief's address to the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on 18 January 2023. The focus of the Forum (16-20 January) is on 'Cooperation in a Fragmented World'.
NEW YORK | DAVOS (IDN) — [The Forum's] theme perfectly sets out the dilemma of today’s world: We need cooperation, yet we face fragmentation.
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*
LUND, Sweden (IDN) — With unanimous approval in the Security Council, the UN, over the course of December, passed resolutions directed at seven different locations of conflict. Most of what the Security Council ordered doing was to the point. Even at a time of heightened antagonism between the West and Russia, the day-to-day work of trying to bring peace to many parts of the world goes on—from Somalia to Myanmar, from Syria to Yemen.
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*
LUND, Sweden (IDN) — In the year 2000, President Vladimir Putin, having just won his first election, made his own contribution to solving the nuclear weapons imbroglio. He said in a speech that Moscow was prepared to drastically reduce its stockpile of nuclear missiles. Putin's call was not just for further cuts than the US suggested ceiling of 2,500 for each side but for reductions far below Moscow's previous target of 1,500. (At present, Russia has around 6,000 warheads and the US 5,400.)
Viewpoint by Herbert Wulf
This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished with their permission.
BONN (IDN) — Putin's war against Ukraine has not only damaged the cooperative security architecture but destroyed it permanently. The Helsinki Act of 1975, the Paris Charter of 1990 and the NATO-Russia Founding Act of 1997 created a basis for security cooperation in Europe – even "a new era of democracy, peace and unity" as the Paris Charter titled euphorically. At least that's how state leaders saw it at the decade after the end of the Cold War.
Viewpoint by Daryl G. Kimball
The writer is the Executive Director of the Arms Control Association (ACA). The following text was published in the organization’s monthly journal, Arms Control Today.
WASHINGTON, D.C. (IDN) — Even before his disastrous decision to invade Ukraine last year, Russian President Vladimir Putin had demonstrated a malign indifference toward basic norms of international behavior, an uneven record of compliance with cornerstone arms control agreements, and a penchant for bullying and using deadly force against opponents.
By Daisaku Ikeda
The following is the text of the statement by peacebuilder and Buddhist leader Daisaku Ikeda, who is president of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI).
TOKYO (IDN) — The Ukraine crisis that erupted in February last year continues with no prospect for cessation. The intensified hostilities have inflicted great suffering in population centers and destroyed infrastructure facilities, compelling large numbers of civilians, including many children and women, to live in a state of constant peril. More than 7.9 million people have been forced to find refuge in countries throughout Europe, and some 5.9 million have been internally displaced.
