(Eagle News) — The Philippines urged Russia and Ukraine to abide by the decision of the International Court of Justice, which reminded states “to act in conformity with their obligations under the United Nations Charter and other rules of international law” amid the ongoing violence in Ukraine.
In a statement, the Philippines also “noted” the ICJ’s March 16 order that stems from Ukraine’s application for the initiation of proceedings against Russia following its military operations against its neighboring country.
In the order, the ICJ expressed profound concern about the use of force by Russia and the continuing loss of life and human suffering in Ukraine.
The Philippines took the opportunity to reaffirm its “full support” for the ICJ, and urged both Russia and Ukraine to “continue exerting every effort ‘short of the latter surrendering any portion or particle of a state’s sovereignty and the rights, privileges, and prerogatives pertaining thereto — war is not the worst evil nor is peace at the price of submission — to peacefully settle their dispute in the interest of upholding the rule of law and maintaining international peace and security.”
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, an intergovernmental military alliance of at least 28 European countries and the US, among others, which previously condemned Russia’s action while stopping short of deploying military troops to the aid of Ukraine, a non-member, recently held a series of emergency summits over the incident.
Russia has accused NATO of ignoring its security concerns amid NATO’s acceptance into the alliance of European countries near Russian borders.
Prior to Russia’s military operations in Ukraine, Ukraine had also expressed its intent to join the alliance.
