UniTeam senatorial candidate Harry Roque believes that candidates of the upcoming 2022 national elections should bare their stances on the Ukraine-Russia war.
Russia invaded Ukraine last Feb. 24, resulting in a skyrocket in the prices of basic commodities, most notably, fuel.
"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?" Roque posed during a Davao City press conference on Monday, Feb. 28.
“I encourage every member of the media to ask each and every senatorial candidate what policies they intend to initiate in the Senate concerning this recent armed conflict,” Roque concluded.
Roque, who once taught International Public Law at the University of the Philippines College of Law, cited the United Nations (UN) Charter which finds Russia’s invasion of Ukraine illegal.
"The invasion of Ukraine is illegal as it is contrary to Article 51, which compels countries to settle their disputes peacefully, and contrary to Chapter 7 of the UN Charter that the use of force is prohibited except by way of self-defense and by way of UN Security Council authorization.
He further compared the invasion of Ukraine to the United States’ invasion of Iraq in 2003.
“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 of resort to the use of force 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.
Interestingly, vice presidential candidate and UniTeam frontwoman Sara Duterte-Carpio has said that her stance on the Ukraine-Russia war does not matter.
The Davao City Mayor said this after the Philippines joined the UN General Assembly’s condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Tuesday, March 1.