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STORY: UNGA80 / RUSSIAN FEDERATION
TRT: 05:23
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: RUSSIAN / NATS
DATELINE: 27 SEPTEMBER 2025, NEW YORK CITY
1. Med shot, United Nations flag
2. Wide shot, Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russian Federation walks to the podium
3. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“The principle of non-use of force and the threat of force has also been repeatedly violated by the West. NATO bombings of Yugoslavia, the U.S.-led coalition’s invasion of Iraq, and NATO’s regime-change operation in Libya all ended in tragedies. Today, Israel’s unlawful use of force against Palestinians, as well as aggressive actions against Iran, Qatar, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq, threaten to blow up the entire Middle East.”
4. Wide shot, General Assembly
5. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“Russia strongly condemned the Hamas militants’ attack on peaceful Israelis on October 7, 2023. However, there can be no justification for the brutal killings of Palestinian civilians, just as there can be none for acts of terrorism.”
6. Wide shot, General Assembly
7. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“In fact, we are dealing with an attempt at a kind of coup d’état aimed at burying the UN decisions on the creation of a Palestinian state. Recently, a number of Western governments announced the recognition of the State of Palestine. Moreover, they had announced their intention to do so several months ago. The question arises: why did they wait so long? Apparently, they were hoping that by the beginning of the General Assembly there would be nothing left to recognize - and no one.”
8. Wide shot, General Assembly
9. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“Also worthy of condemnation were strikes on Iranian facilities under IAEA safeguards, followed by strikes on Qatar’s capital at the very moment negotiations with Hamas were taking place there, with the participation of American mediators as well.”
10. Wide shot, General Assembly
11. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“Yesterday in the Security Council, the West rejected the reasonable proposal by China and Russia to extend the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, in order to give diplomacy time. This exposed once and for all the West’s course of sabotaging constructive solutions in the UN Security Council and its drive to extract unilateral concessions from Tehran through blackmail and pressure. We consider such a policy unacceptable, and all Western manipulations to reinstate UN anti-Iran sanctions - like the sanctions themselves - illegal.”
12. Wide shot, General Assembly
13. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“Likewise, the Kyiv regime, which seized power in the West-orchestrated unconstitutional coup of 2014, has set course on eliminating the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church and legislatively eradicating the Russian language in all spheres - education, culture, media. Ukraine is the only country in the world that has legally banned the use of the native language of nearly half its population.”
14. Wide shot, General Assembly
15. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“As President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly emphasized, from the very beginning Russia has been and remains open to negotiations to address the root causes of the conflict. Russia’s security and vital interests must be reliably guaranteed. The rights of Russians and Russian-speaking people in territories under Kyiv’s control must be restored and fully respected. On this basis, we are also ready to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine.”
16. Wide shot, General Assembly
17. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“We have repeatedly proposed to NATO capitals that they honor their obligations and agree on legally binding security guarantees. Our proposals have been ignored and continue to be ignored. Moreover, there are increasingly frequent threats of the use of force against Russia, with accusations that it supposedly plans to attack NATO and EU countries. President Putin has repeatedly debunked such provocations. Russia never had and does not have such intentions. However, any aggression against my country will receive a decisive response.”
18. Wide shot, General Assembly
19. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Sergey Lavrov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Russian Federation:
“The issue of Security Council reform is especially important. Russia advocates its democratization exclusively through expanding representation of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. We support the bids of Brazil and India for permanent membership in the Council, while also correcting the historical injustice toward Africa, in parameters agreed upon by the continent’s own countries. Recently, Secretary-General António Guterres proposed a comprehensive UN reform. We are not opposed to open discussion of this initiative. The guiding principle, however, must be a return of the UN to its founding principles, enshrined in its Charter, which the West has long sought to replace with its so-called “rules-based order.””
20. Wide shot, General Assembly
“The principle of non-use of force and the threat of force has also been repeatedly violated by the West,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly.
Lavrov cited “NATO bombings of Yugoslavia, the U.S.-led coalition’s invasion of Iraq, and NATO’s regime-change operation in Libya,” saying all had ended in “tragedies.” He said that Israel’s “unlawful use of force against Palestinians, as well as aggressive actions against Iran, Qatar, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq, threaten to blow up the entire Middle East.”
On the war between Israel and Hamas, Lavrov said “Russia condemned the Hamas militants’ attack on peaceful Israelis on October 7, 2023.” But, he added, “there can be no justification for the brutal killings of Palestinian civilians, just as there can be none for acts of terrorism.”
He said Western powers had undermined UN decisions on a two-state solution. “In fact, we are dealing with an attempt at a kind of coup d’état aimed at burying the UN decisions on the creation of a Palestinian state,” Lavrov said. “Recently, a number of Western governments announced the recognition of the State of Palestine. Moreover, they had announced their intention to do so several months ago. The question arises: why did they wait so long? Apparently, they were hoping that by the beginning of the General Assembly there would be nothing left to recognize - and no one.”
He also referred to “strikes on Iranian facilities under IAEA safeguards, followed by strikes on Qatar’s capital at the very moment negotiations with Hamas were taking place there, with the participation of American mediators.”
Lavrov said Western powers blocked a joint Chinese-Russian proposal to extend the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran. “This exposed once and for all the West’s course of sabotaging constructive solutions in the UN Security Council,” he said, adding that Western attempts to reinstate UN sanctions on Iran were “illegal.”
Turning to Ukraine, Lavrov said the “Kyiv regime, which seized power in the West-orchestrated unconstitutional coup of 2014,” was seeking to “eliminate the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church and legislatively eradicate the Russian language.” He said, “Ukraine is the only country in the world that has legally banned the use of the native language of nearly half its population.”
He said, “Russia has been and remains open to negotiations to address the root causes of the conflict. Russia’s security and vital interests must be reliably guaranteed. The rights of Russians and Russian-speaking people in territories under Kyiv’s control must be restored and fully respected. On this basis, we are also ready to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine.”
Lavrov said NATO had not responded to Russia’s security proposals and referred to “increasingly frequent threats of the use of force against Russia.” He noted there were “accusations” that Russia supposedly planned to attack NATO and EU countries but added that “Russia never had and does not have such intentions.” However, he said any aggression against Russia “will receive a decisive response.”
On UN reform, Lavrov called for “expanding representation of Asia, Africa, and Latin America” on the Security Council, supporting Brazil, India and African states for permanent seats. He said the UN must “return to its founding principles, enshrined in its Charter, which the West has long sought to replace with its so-called ‘rules-based order.’”
