The UNSC discussed the risks posed by food insecurity in Gaza under the heading “Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict”.
Nebenzia was the first to speak, accusing the United States and its “Western colleagues” of allowing Israel to use food as an instrument of war.
Nebenzia said that the draft resolution submitted by the United States for negotiations did not call for a ceasefire, adding that it “authorizes killing”.
Following Nebenzia, US Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Wood said, “I want to remind everyone that Russia is not a contributor to solving humanitarian crises, it is a cause of them.”
“I listened to Russia’s concerns about damage to civilian infrastructure, but I could not take them seriously,” Wood said, adding that it would be enough to look at Ukraine for this, and that Russia had no right to criticize another country for violating the UN Charter.
In response, Nebenzia told Wood that he should be ashamed for comparing Ukraine and Gaza, saying, “You cannot lecture us as the country that bombed Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria with heavy damage.”
“See your own mistakes before you point out ours,” Nebenzia said.
Wood stated that he did not make a comparison between Ukraine and Gaza, but drew attention to Russia’s actions and asked Nebenzia, “Are you claiming that you did not bomb Ukraine?”
Nebenzia, on the other hand, demanded an end to the debate, arguing that Russia had only struck military targets in Ukraine.
