A Russian diplomat at the United Nations in Geneva said Monday that he resigned from his post over the "aggressive war unleashed" by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Why it matters: It's a rare public condemnation of Russia's invasion of Ukraine by a member of the Russian diplomatic corps.
Driving the news: "For twenty years of my diplomatic career I have seen different turns of our foreign policy, but never have I been so ashamed of my country as on February 24 of this year," Boris Bondarev wrote on LinkedIn in a post announcing his departure.
- "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 also, perhaps, the most serious crime against the people of Russia, with a bold letter Z crossing out all hopes and prospects for a prosperous free society in our country," he wrote.
- Bondarev, a diplomatic counselor, confirmed to the Associated Press that he turned in his resignation in a letter to ambassador Gennady Gatilov.
State of play: Bondarev also told AP that he is worried about the potential reaction from Moscow to his resignation.
- "Am I concerned about the possible reaction from Moscow? I have to be concerned about it," he said.
What he's saying: "I studied to be a diplomat and have been a diplomat for twenty years. The Ministry has become my home and family," he wrote in the LinkedIn post.
- "But I simply cannot any longer share in this bloody, witless and absolutely needless ignominy."
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