New Delhi: Amid the ongoing escalation of Russia's military offensive in Ukraine, the United Kingdom government said it is open to removing Moscow as one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
According to news agency AFP, the UK is planning to evict Russia from UN Security Council among "all options" on the table.
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"The UK government is open to removing Russia as one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council following the invasion of Ukraine," Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman told the news agency.
Britain is one of the five permanent members of UNSC alongside Russia, the United States, China and France.
"I think it's something we want to discuss with the UN obviously," the spokesman, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.
"There are the mechanisms in place for that which are well established," he said, adding that Johnson had yet to stake out a position himself on the question.
"What is right to say is that we want to see Russia isolated diplomatically, and we will consider all options to achieve that," the spokesperson added.
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The statement by Britain comes hours after Russia's Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Moscow will continue its special military operation in Ukraine until it achieves the main goal of defending Russia from Western threats.
Both Russia and Ukraine concluded their first round of negotiations in Belarus on Monday with no clear breakthrough. After the meeting, Putin reiterated that a settlement would only be possible if Russia's security concerns were taken into account.