Senatorial candidates should be asked about the ongoing war between Ukraine and Russia to know where they stand on this critical world issue which affects the country’s foreign policy.
UniTeam senatorial candidate Harry Roque, an international law and human rights lawyer, said national candidates should have a good grasp of international issues to craft policies in times of international crisis.
“Although the executive is indeed the architect of the foreign policy, the Senate and House of Representatives are still the policymakers. What are the policies that have to be made given the insurgence?” he asked.
Roque, a former University of the Philippines law professor, also said that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine’s and the United States’ invasion of Iraq in the past were both illegal.
“It is contrary to Article 51, which compels countries to settle their disputes peacefully, and contrary to Chapter 7 of the United Nations Charter,” he said.
“When Iraq was invaded by the US and allied forces, they also did not have a UN security council authorization. Neither was it done in self-defense,” Roque said.
“Both instances were illegal, and the ongoing war is still illegal. But the point that we would like to stress is that this is what happens when countries refuse to abide by their treaty obligation under the UN charter,” he explained.
On Monday, peace talks between delegations from Ukraine and Russia held on the Belarusian border ended with no breakthrough in sight as shellings continued.
Ukraine is putting up massive resistance against invading Russian forces. The United States, Great Britain, and other western allies tried to isolate Russia’s economy from the rest of the world in support of Ukraine.
The Philippines supports the United Nations General Assembly resolution calling on Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine as it voiced “explicit condemnation” of the invasion and called for the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure.
Roque has said that the war between Russia and Ukraine has already affected the Philippines economically as crude oil prices have increased and the essential commodities price have soared.
