“Russian Diplomat Quits over Ukraine” is a welcome departure from the “Russian Diplomat Expelled For Spying” headlines.
Boris Bondarev, the Foreign Minister at the UN Office in Geneva, resigned Monday in protest. His letter stated, “Never had I been so ashamed about my country.”
Bondarev’s letter, written in English, was sent to the Associated Press by an unnamed diplomat source.
Over the twenty-years of my diplomatic career, I have witnessed many different directions of our foreign policies. But I was never so ashamed of my country on February 24, 2018. Putin’s aggressive war against Ukraine and the West is not only a crime against Ukrainians, but perhaps the worst crime against Russians, as a bold letter Z obliterates all hope and potential for a free and prosperous Russia.
Bondarev called the Foreign Ministry “unprofessional” and warned it would produce propaganda cliches in the style of Soviet newspapers from the 1930s. It has created a system that deceives itself.
He said, “Today, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs does not concern diplomacy.” It’s all about lies, warmongering and hatred.
CBS News described it as “a rare, if not unheard of, public admission of disgruntlement over Russia’s war on Ukraine.”
Click here to read the whole letter, including a screencap.
Bondarev spoke to the AP by phone after his resignation. He said that it was “intolerable” that his government is doing. “As a civil servant I must take a part of that responsibility, and that I don’t want that.”
“Am I worried about the possible response from Moscow?” It is something I must be concerned about.
It became illegal for Russia in March to “discredit” Russia’s army or refer to the invasion in Ukraine as “war”. Bondarev could face a fine or even a sentence of up to 15 years imprisonment.
Bondarev was a member of the UN Conference on Disarmament from 1995 to today.
