UNITED NATIONS — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on every U.N. Security Council member to “send a clear message” to Russia that it must stop its nuclear threats in the war in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier this week that his nuclear-armed country will “certainly use all means available to us” if its territory is threatened and to defend the country and its people.
Blinken used a council session Thursday to criticize Russia's invasion and press other countries to join in Washington's forceful condemnations of the conflict. He listed atrocities he said were committed by Russia — and suggested that more could come.
“Every council member should send a clear message that these reckless nuclear threats must stop immediately,” he said.
The Security Council has held dozens of contentious meetings on Ukraine since the war began in February, but Thursday's meeting had special stature: It was held during the annual U.N. General Assembly gathering of world leaders and brought multiple foreign ministers to the table.
Called by France, the current council president, the meeting was focused on addressing accountability for alleged abuses and atrocities, and the U.S. and other Western members repeatedly accused Russia of committing them.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, meanwhile, repeated his country's frequent claims that Kyiv has long oppressed Russian speakers in…
