At UN, Russia’s war in Ukraine is both text and subtext

By MALLIKA SEN
Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — After two years of discourse dominated by the coronavirus pandemic, the war in Ukraine has taken center stage at this year’s U.N. General Assembly. The pleas made by leaders from around the world for peace were both an altruistic amplification of besieged Ukrainians’ plight as well as born from self-interest. As several speeches made clear, the repercussions of the Russian invasion have been felt even thousands of miles away. The speeches that elided any direct reference to the conflict were few, but the war resounded in the absence of its direct invocation.