Brazil and other BRICS countries do not join request for UNHRC meeting on Ukraine

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Itamaraty, the headquarter of Brazil’s foreign affairs, asserts that it will not oppose the holding of the meeting, but advocates that more time is allowed for independent investigations into human rights violations in the country.

Led by Kyiv and all European capitals, the project found enough support that the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) convened a meeting on Thursday (12).

The aim is to examine reports of war crimes committed by Russia and adopt a resolution condemning President Vladimir Putin.

The approval of one-third of the Council’s 47 members is required to convene an emergency meeting. By last night, this number had been reached, with support from the governments of Finland, France, The Gambia, Germany, Japan, the United States, and others. In Latin America, Mexico supported the proposal.

Another 37 non-Council countries also pledged their support, including several Latin American countries such as Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Peru.

Countries that have close ties to the Kremlin, such as Hungary, have also pledged their official support.

China, India, and South Africa – all BRICS members – have not joined the project.

When asked, Itamaraty explained his position. “Brazil believes that holding a special session on Ukraine would bring more time for the proper conduct of investigations into alleged human rights violations in the country,” it said.

The investigation process was launched in March with the establishment of a commission of inquiry. But the mechanism’s work is far from complete.

“However, given the deterioration of the overall situation in the region and the important role played by the Human Rights Council in monitoring the human rights situation in Ukraine, Brazil does not reject the initiative,” it said.

The statement said Brazil has “promoted the debate on the situation in Ukraine in multilateral fora, particularly at the United Nations, where we have supported initiatives and resolutions on this issue.” “At the last session of the Human Rights Council in March, Brazil voted in favor of the resolution on the “human rights situation in Ukraine as a result of Russian aggression,” it said.

“In parallel, the Brazilian government has been following with concern the development of the situation on the ground. Brazil has worked to ensure that reports of human rights violations in Ukraine are promptly investigated in an independent, objective and transparent manner by the relevant international bodies, including the Commission of Inquiry, established for this purpose in Council Resolution 49/1,” it added.

The scenario reiterates Brazil’s efforts to maintain a delicate balance in the Ukraine war. If Brazil is pushed to condemn violence against civilians and the invasion of a sovereign country, Itamaraty believes that the situation in Moscow must also be taken into account.

This stance would fulfill at least three objectives. The first would be to avoid direct confrontation with Putin at the national level and leave the doors open in the Kremlin for Brazil to negotiate access to fertilizers and other products offered by Moscow.

The second goal is to maintain one of Bolsonaro’s few relationships with a foreign head of state.

The third would be not to dismantle the multilateral system. Not coincidentally, Brazil did not support Russia’s suspension from the Human Rights Council and abstained from voting on several other resolutions that included measures against Moscow.

During the meeting, however, the Brazilian position will again be put to the test, as a resolution will be put to a vote and it will be up to the executive branch to signal how it will respond.

In recent weeks, the governments of the United States and the United Kingdom-both members of the Council-have increased pressure on Brazil to join the ranks of governments supporting the diplomatic isolation of Putin.