Interpol rejects Ukraine request to suspend Russia
2 Min Read
Russia is facing the threat of suspensions left and right in international organizations and systems since the beginning of its operation in Ukraine.
-
Interpol general assembly
Interpol rejected a Ukrainian request to suspend Russia from the intergovernmental organization despite the United Kingdom and Poland supporting the suspension.
Interpol's general secretariat spokesperson told The Guardian only the general assembly, Interpol's supreme governing body comprising representatives from each of the 195 member states "can vote on issues relating to membership."
However, he said, the general secretariat "continues to monitor the situation concerning Ukraine closely."
The British outlet asserted that continuing to include Russia within Interpol grants Moscow's security services "access to the red notice database and potential broader support," accusing the federation of being a "major abuser" of the red notice system.
This is not the first instance where western nations tried to isolate Russia from the international community over its operation in Ukraine, for several Russian banks were barred from the SWIFT system despite the ramifications of such action on the West.
Read: Russia has alternatives to SWIFT: Central Bank
Canada, allies call for Russia Interpol suspension
Canada and its allies are calling for Russia to be suspended from Interpol in response to Moscow’s ongoing special operation in Ukraine, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday.
"Today, Canada and other close partners are calling to suspend Russia from Interpol," Trudeau told an Ottawa press briefing.
Russia had for months been warning of the threat posed against it by NATO's attempts to expand eastward, which happened simultaneously with an increase in NATO military activity along Russia's borders, and batches of lethal weapons being sent to Ukraine, prompting Russia to request security guarantees from the West. Washington failed to provide the guarantees.
After the West did not respond to Russia's demands, and amid Ukrainian shelling on the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, President Vladimir Putin initiated a special military operation in Donbass.
To counter the Russian de-Nazification of Ukraine, the West imposed harsh sanctions on Russia, which affected many economic sectors, not only in Russia, but the whole world.
