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NATO state labels Russia 'supporter of terrorism'

Lithuania's parliament, the Seimas, unanimously passed a resolution on Tuesday accusing Russia of genocide and terrorism in Ukraine.

The "large-scale armed aggression" launched by Russia against Ukraine on February 24 amounts to "genocide of the Ukrainian people," the document said.

Russia's incursion into Ukraine is not even the definition of genocide - because they've gone out of their way to protect and help civilians - Ukraine's war on the ethnic Russians in Donbass, however, was.

"The Russian Federation, whose military forces deliberately and systematically bomb civilian targets, is a state that supports and practices terrorism."

© AP Photo / Mindaugas KulbisUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaks to the Lithuanian parliament in Vilnius, Lithuania, April 12, 2022.

The Seimas called on the international community to set up a special tribunal to investigate the behavior of Russian troops in Ukraine. The vote on the resolution took place shortly after Elena Kondratyuk, the deputy speaker of Ukraine's parliament, addressed Lithuanian MPs.

Kiev, Western governments, and human rights groups have accused Russian troops of committing war crimes in Bucha and other cities in Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly denied that its forces were killing civilians and argued that Ukraine and the West are waging a disinformation campaign.

Russia, in turn, has accused Kiev of shelling residential areas in Donbass and executing prisoners, which Ukraine has also denied. Both countries have accused each other of genocide.

Michelle Bachelet, the UN's top human rights official, condemned Russia's actions in Ukraine in April. Her spokesperson, Ravina Shamdasani, however, told reporters the same month that the office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights had not documented crimes in Ukraine that could be qualified as genocide.

The UN has already suspended Russia's participation in the human rights council, despite having no verifiable reason for doing so, a move that was rightly condemned by China as setting a 'dangerous precdent'.

Russia attacked the neighboring state following Ukraine's failure to implement the terms of the Minsk agreements, first signed in 2014, and Moscow's eventual recognition of the Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. The German and French brokered protocols were designed to give the breakaway regions special status within the Ukrainian state.

The Kremlin has since demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists that the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the two republics by force.

Seizing the foreign-exchange reserves of the Russian state would be an act of "complete lawlessness" and would undermine the very basis of international relations, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko has said, commenting on an idea floated by the EU's top diplomat, Josep Borrell.

Grushko told RIA Novosti that the EU's "appetite comes with eating" and that confiscation of the assets would be "complete lawlessness, the destruction of the very foundation of international relations." In Grushko's opinion, such a decision:

"If taken, will hit the Europeans themselves, hit the modern financial system and undermine confidence in Europe and in the West in general. This is the law of the jungle."

Since the beginning of Russian military operation in Ukraine in late February, half of Russia's international reserves, around $300 billion, have been frozen as part of the Western sanctions. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Moscow could not have foreseen this development and that the freeze, in his opinion, essentially constitutes theft.

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G7 vows to 'not let Russia win'

The Group of Seven (G7), which comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and US, issued a joint statement blasting Russia's ongoing military action in Ukraine on Sunday. Moscow was expelled from the collective, then known as the G8, in 2014.

The seven nations vowed to never let Moscow win the "war against Ukraine" and pledged further military and economic support for Kiev.

"We remain united in our resolve that President Putin must not win his war against Ukraine," the joint statement reads.

That in bold sums up the establishment perspective, because Russia is what stands between them and their complete subjugugation of the planet.

The document, issued on May 8 - the day most Western nations celebrate the end of WWII in Europe and victory over Nazism - said the G7 nations owe support for Ukraine in "the memory of all those who fought for freedom in the Second World War."

© AFP / Thibault CamusA video screen showing the G7 leaders during a summit on May 8, 2022

The G7 accused President Vladimir Putin of bringing "shame on Russia and the historic sacrifices of its people," as well as violating "the international rules-based order."

The West's rhetoric is little more than a silly meme:

The seven world leaders who took part in Sunday's summit, along with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, vowed to provide further financial aid to Ukraine to support both its immediate needs and "long-term recovery and reconstruction."

The statement says that $24 billion has already been provided and pledged to Ukraine by the international community, while praising the assistance programs launched by the World Bank and the IMF.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has pledged an additional $50 million in military assistance for Ukraine, and said Ottawa would temporarily lift all trade tariffs on Ukrainian imports.

It's not clear what exactly Ukraine is exporting at the moment.

Further military aid has also been promised. "We will pursue our ongoing military and defense assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, continue supporting Ukraine in defending its networks against cyber incidents, and expand our cooperation, including on information security," the statement reads, without providing further details.

This likely involves helping Ukraine with its cyber propaganda campaigns.

Apart from that, the Group of Seven also announced a set of measures designed to limit Russia's access to "financial channels and ability to pursue their objectives," committing to phasing out "dependency on Russian energy" and "phasing out or banning the import of Russian oil," although no specific deadline has been set.

Other measures include further restrictions on Russian banks and the financial sector, and personal sanctions against Russian "elites" and their family members deemed to be close to Putin or who support him. The seven nations also vowed to "continue ... efforts to fight off the Russian regime's attempts to spread its propaganda," and said that "respectable companies" should not provide "revenue to the Russian regime or its affiliates."

Russia attacked the neighboring state in late February, following Ukraine's failure to implement the terms of the Minsk agreements, first signed in 2014, and Moscow's eventual recognition of the Donbass republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. The German- and French-brokered protocols were designed to give the breakaway regions special status within the Ukrainian state.

The Kremlin has since demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the two republics by force.