Advisor to the Russian Mission to the UN in Geneva quits in protest against the invasion of Ukraine

Boris Bondarev, adviser to Russia's permanent mission to the UN in Geneva, resigned in protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Bondarev, who worked as a diplomat for about 20 years, explained his decision in a letter to colleagues, a copy of which was posted on Twitter by UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer.

In the letter, Bondarev, in particular, writes that during his work he saw various turns in Russian foreign policy, but he “has never been so ashamed of his country as on February 24,” when Russian troops invaded Ukraine.

“The aggressive war unleashed by Putin against Ukraine, and in fact against the entire Western world, is not only a crime against the Ukrainian people, but probably the most serious crime against the people of Russia,” Bondarev believes, emphasizing that “the bold letter Z crossed out all hopes and prospects for a prosperous and free society in our country.”

Bondarev has already been interviewed by several media outlets, including Britain's The Telegraph, to which he, among other things, told that he felt "disgusted" representing Russia abroad after Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine. Also, Bondarev, who worked on nuclear non-proliferation issues, was "horrified," he said, by how flippantly Russian officials began to talk about the use of such weapons.

According to Bondarev, he is far from the only Russian diplomat who decided to resign after the outbreak of the war. Several of his acquaintances, Bondarev said, quietly resigned from the Foreign Ministry, since even those who adhere to militant rhetoric in public space admit in private conversations that they are shocked by the brutal war in Ukraine and the fact that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is engaged in invents excuses for obvious war crimes. “What is the point in our work when the President of Russia is the only “diplomat” in this country, and he “knows better”? Bondarev said.

In an interview with BBC Russian Service, when asked if he was afraid of being called a traitor, Bondarev replied: “I think they already consider me one.”