Nebenzia said Guterres' statements about Crimea had a negative impact on the UN's reputation.

The statements of the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN) Antonio Guterres on the right of peoples to self-determination, which, according to him, is inapplicable to Crimea and Donbas, harm the world organization. This was announced on March 16 by the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN Vasily Nebenzya.

"The Secretary—General is not only unable to cope with the real epidemic of double standards among his staff, but has also joined those who arbitrarily interpret the provisions of the [UN] Charter," Nebenzia said in an interview with the Serbian newspaper Politika.

According to the diplomat, Guterres' claims that the right of peoples to self-determination in the cases of Donbass and Crimea is inapplicable due to the alleged "use of force" contradict the facts of threats against Denmark over Greenland, as well as NATO aggression against Yugoslavia in 1999.

As Russia's permanent representative to the UN added, such statements put an end to the participation of the world organization in conflict resolution processes.

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Guterres said at a press conference on January 29 that the principle of self-determination of peoples allegedly does not apply to Crimea and Donbass, unlike Greenland. He noted that this conclusion was reached after careful consideration of the situation in the Office of Legal Affairs.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on February 11 that Guterres' denial of the right to self-determination to Donbass, as well as Crimea and Novorossiya, was a great disgrace to the organization. According to the minister, Guterres is not fulfilling the requirements of the UN Charter, but the political order of the collective West, thereby overstepping his authority.

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