China, Brazil urge against nuclear threats over Ukraine

China and Brazil condemn nuclear threats in Ukraine, advocate for peaceful solutions in joint statement with other emerging powers.

China and Brazil led a joint call Friday (September 27, 2024) against any use or threat of nuclear weapons over Ukraine, in a thinly veiled criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin's sabre-rattling.

"We call on refraining from the use or the threat of weapons of mass destruction, particularly nuclear weapons and chemical and biological weapons," said a joint statement issued at the United Nations that was also signed by South Africa and Turkey.

Mr. Putin this week threatened to use nuclear weapons in the event of a major attack on Russian soil as Ukraine, which his forces invaded in 2022, seeks Western weapons to strike deeper across the border.

Two days after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a UN address accused Russia of planning to attack his country's nuclear reactors, China, Brazil and the other emerging powers said: "Civilian infrastructures, including peaceful nuclear facilities and other energy facilities, should not be the targets of military operation."

China, itself a nuclear power, and Brazil have led calls for mediation to resolve the conflict. Mr. Zelensky criticized them by name in his UN address, saying that forcing Ukraine to accept a peace deal was akin to colonialism.

The emerging powers on Friday (September 27, 2024) reiterated "the importance of peaceful solutions for all international conflicts."

"We call for support for a comprehensive and lasting settlement by the parties to the conflict through inclusive diplomacy and political means based on the UN Charter," they said.