\n Moscow faced stinging criticism at the UN on Monday over a deteriorating rights situation inside Russia as it pushes ahead with its war in Ukraine, but far from all countries chimed in.\n<\/p>\n
\n During a regular review of Russia's rights record at the United Nations in Geneva, Western countries again slammed its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and decried its crackdown on civil society and jailing of journalists and political opponents at home.\n<\/p>\n
\n But few other countries even mentioned Ukraine, urging only small improvements to its domestic situation, while a number congratulated Russia for progress on rights issues.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"We condemn the Russian government's brutal war of aggression against Ukraine and its almost complete domestic crackdown on dissent,\" US ambassador Michele Taylor told the gathering.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"Impunity for the Kremlin's human rights violations and abuses at home has directly enabled its aggression and atrocities abroad,\" she added.\n<\/p>\n
\n Britain's ambassador Simon Manley urged Russia to \"cease the forcible transfer and deportation of Ukrainian children,\" release jailed political opponents and repeal legislation enabling its \"vicious crackdown\" on dissent.\n<\/p>\n
\n - 'Not safe' -\n<\/p>\n
\n The top UN expert on the human rights situation inside Russia, Mariana Katzarova, recently warned of a significant deterioration since its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.\n<\/p>\n
\n She pointed to soaring numbers of people prosecuted on \"politically motivated charges\", and decried how allegations of espionage and treason were increasingly being used to silence journalists.\n<\/p>\n
\n A group of independent Russian journalists who travelled to Geneva for the review voiced hope that the event would help keep an international spotlight on Moscow's abuses.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"I can't go back,\" said Regina Gimalova, a journalist with Verstka Media who lives in exile.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"A lot of my colleagues are prosecuted in Russia. For me it is not safe.\"\n<\/p>\n
\n But during Monday's Universal Periodic Review (UPR) -- which all 193 UN countries must undergo every four years -- Russia's delegation rejected the criticism, reiterating that Moscow did not recognise Katzarova's mandate and insisting the war raging in Ukraine was irrelevant to its domestic rights situation.\n<\/p>\n
\n Russian Deputy Justice Minister Andrey Loginov, who headed the delegation, called on countries to \"not use human rights issues as a pretext for interference in the domestic affairs of other states\".\n<\/p>\n
\n He maintained that Russia had strived to improve its rights situation, but said it had faced numerous obstacles, including \"unprecedented sanctions pressure\" and restrictions on participation in international meetings.\n<\/p>\n
\n Moscow received the usual support from countries like Cuba, Venezuela, Eritrea and North Korea, as well as China, who hailed its commitment \"to improving the living standards of its citizens\".\n<\/p>\n
\n But it also received praise from the likes of Lebanon, who commended Moscow's \"call for ceasefire and protecting civilians in Gaza\".\n<\/p>\n
\n Ukraine's ambassador Yevheniia Filipenko meanwhile insisted that it was vital that Russia \"be held accountable\" for its numerous \"war crimes and crimes against humanity\".<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Moscow faced stinging criticism at the UN on Monday over a deteriorating rights situation inside Russia as it pushes ahead with its war in Ukraine, but far from all countries chimed in. During a regular review of Russia's rights record at the United Nations in Geneva, Western countries again slammed its full-scale invasion of Ukraine […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[553],"tags":[],"ji_location":[],"class_list":["post-124701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-live-feed"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n