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Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine is an "imperial project" that must be stopped through multilateral efforts and pressure on Moscow to end the aggression, Lithuanian Ambassador to India Diana Mickeviciene said on Thursday, while stressing the importance of peaceful resistance and international action.
Speaking to ANI on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which is currently in its fifth year, Mickeviciene invoked Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy of non-violence and Lithuania's experience of resisting Soviet rule, saying the international community has a role to play in confronting aggression. "Mahatma Gandhi said that nonviolence is a very powerful tool and should be used as long as possible. However, he himself admitted that there are limits to that. If there is one party that is clearly stronger and on an aggressive path, peaceful resistance might be problematic," she said. The Lithuanian envoy said that despite the challenges faced by her country, peaceful resistance had played an important role in Lithuania's struggle for independence. "But we have to always strive for the ideal, and peaceful resistance was possible for us and served us," she said. Recalling Lithuania's experience during the Soviet era, Mickeviciene said her country had faced military intervention but continued to hope that the international community would respond to any attempt to suppress its independence. "Even though we had the Soviet tank attack, which killed a number of people in Lithuania, we still hoped that the world would mind a much more gruesome intervention in our independence, and we were right; the world did mind," she said. She said Lithuania's experience raised a broader question about the responsibility of the international community in responding to aggression. "This brings us back to the discussion: what is the global community's role in actually stopping the aggression, which has no reason whatsoever, which has never had any valid reason?" Mickeviciene said. "The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine is an imperial project that needs to be stopped at a multilateral level and by pressurising basically the aggressor to go back," she added. Her remarks came amid continued Russian attacks on Ukraine, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying on Thursday that emergency response operations were underway following a major Russian strike on Kyiv and the surrounding region. Zelenskyy said more than 600 personnel from Ukraine's State Emergency Service and police were involved in rescue and recovery operations in Kyiv, Brovary and Boryspil. According to the Ukrainian President, 30 residential buildings, a school, a children's hospital and a kindergarten were damaged in Kyiv and the surrounding region. He said 15 people had been confirmed killed in Kyiv and called for assistance for those injured. Zelenskyy described the attack as one of the "most cynical, calculated, and large-scale" Russian strikes, saying it involved multiple types of missiles and 168 drones. He said Ukrainian forces had intercepted all Russian Kalibr missiles and that the overall interception rate for cruise missiles was 93 per cent, while a significant number of drones were also shot down. Zelenskyy further stated that ballistic missiles remained the greatest threat and linked Ukraine's ability to counter them to the supply of Patriot missile systems from its international partners. He urged Ukraine's partners not to remain silent over Russian strikes and called for continued support to protect civilians and lives in the country. The Lithuanian envoy's comments come as European countries continue to debate military, diplomatic and economic measures aimed at supporting Ukraine and pressuring Russia to end the conflict. (ANI)
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