US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Thursday (local time) said that the United States will continue to work closely with partners, civil society, and the international community to seek justice and accountability for Uyghurs’ abuses in the Xinjiang region.
This comes after the United Nations report published on 31 August, stating that the Chinese government has committed abuses that may amount to crimes against humanity targeting Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xi. “The August 31st report by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights outlines in alarming detail the human rights violations and abuses occurring in Xinjiang.”It concludes that “the extent of arbitrary and discriminatory detention of members of the Uyghur and predominantly Muslim groups may constitute international crimes, particularly crimes against humanity,” and that “serious human rights violations have been committed” in Xi, according to the US State Department’s statement. The United States welcomed that report, which, according to the State Department’s statement, described authoritatively the appalling treatment and abuses of Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious minority groups by the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). It further noted that the report deepens and reaffirms the grave concern of the US regarding the “ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity” that Chinese government authorities are perpetrating against Uyghurs. “We will continue to work closely with our partners, civil society, and the international community to seek justice and accountability for the many victims.
The United States has requested a UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine to be held in the afternoon on September 7, the French Ambassador to the United Nations Nicolas de Riviere said on Thursday.“Between now and then, next week, the subject of Ukraine will still be in the Council with a meeting that should take place on Wednesday, the seventh in the afternoon, on forced displacements in Ukraine upon the request of the United States,” Riviere said during a briefing.
This meeting on Wednesday will follow a meeting on Ukraine of 6 September, which was requested by Russia with a focus on the situation in and around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.France presides with the UN Security Council for the month of September and has signaled that it is interested to discuss the situation in Ukraine.As of now, Ukraine will be discussed in three separate meetings in September but that number is expected to increase as states also tend to request meetings throughout the month based on urgent events on the ground.