ISTANBUL 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Thursday argued that the failure to adhere to the UN Charter is fueling global instability.

Addressing the second G20 foreign ministers meeting on the sidelines of the 80th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, Lavrov described failure to adhere to UN Charter principles as a “manifestation of neo-colonial ambitions,” which he said also “multiplies regional conflicts.”

“A clear example is the crisis in Ukraine, provoked by the collective West,” Lavrov said, accusing NATO and the EU of declaring war on Russia through the Ukraine conflict and “directly” participating in it.

He argued that the recent tensions in the Middle East are also in line with this matter, adding that numerous crises in Africa have remained unresolved for decades.

He particularly mentioned the situation in Gaza, saying the “humanitarian catastrophe” already took the lives of over 65,000 people. He recalled UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ remarks that the Palestinian enclave is a “living hell.”

Lavrov warned that unilateral economic sanctions harm not only the most vulnerable segments of the population in individual countries, but also threaten the global economy as a whole, including through market fragmentation and the disruption of supply chains.