The UN Security Council condemned sexual violence during military conflicts

The UN Security Council adopted a resolution that equates sexual violence with the means of conducting military operations, the Air Force reports. According to the text of the resolution, sexual violence is a means of warfare aimed at "humiliation, establishing dominance, instilling fear, destruction and/or violent change of residence of members of society or ethnic groups."

The resolution contains a call to the governments and the warring parties to take measures to stop sexual violence. In his speech, the UN Secretary General Pan Hi Moon said that in some societies, "violence towards women has reached an epidemic scale."

Former UN peacekeeping commander Patrick Cummaert said that during the armed conflict, it became more dangerous to be a woman than a soldier. " In turn, US Secretary of State Kondoliza Rice expressed concern in connection with the situation in Myanmar, where, according to her, the soldiers regularly rape not only adult women, but also girls.

Representatives of Russia, China, Vietnam and Indonesia opposed the adoption of the resolution. According to the Air Force, they expressed doubts that the UN Security Council "should deal with the problem of rape."