Russia has vowed to veto a draft U.N. resolution calling for sanctions against Syria over its alleged use of chemical weapons on civilians. The UN Security Council resolution was drafted by the US, Britain and France. Following a closed-door council session, Russian Deputy U.N. Envoy Vladimir Safronkov told reporters: “I just explained our position very clearly to our partners.
Over the weekend, following reports that China has banned all North Korean coal imports - in the aftermath of last week's North Korean ballistic missile launch- which marked a troubling escalation in relations between the two formerly "amicable" nations, we discussed how China was tipping its hand that not only was Kim Jong-Un potentially losing a "very big ally", but that it could also lead to "jeopady" for his regime, and a potential political coup in the generally unstable dictatorship.
The Russian ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, died unexpectedly at the age of 65 on Tuesday, the Russian foreign ministry has confirmed. Churkin served as Russia’s permanent representative to the UN since 2006, and died of a mysterious heart attack in New York, according to reports. Nydailynews.com reports: Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power tweeted that Churkin was a “diplomatic maestro and deeply caring man” who did all he could to bridge differences between the U.S. and Russia.
Vitaly Churkin, who served as Russia’s permanent representative to the United Nations “died suddenly” in New York On Monday morning the Russian Foreign Ministry has announced.
Update: according to Reuters, Vladimir Putin was deeply upset to learn of the death of Vitaly Churkin, Russian news agencies cited Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying on Monday.
"The head of state highly valued Churkin's professionalism and diplomatic talent," Peskov said.
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