United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for an end to the “cycle of death and de-struction,” in war-torn Ukraine amid the raging ongoing conflict.
He told the UN Security Council that the Russian invasion is a violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and it should end for the sake of the people of “entire world.” “Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a violation of its territorial integrity and of the Charter of the United Nations,” he told the 15-member Council discussing the situation in Ukraine.
“The cycle of death, destruction, dislocation, and disruption must be stopped for the sake of the people of Ukraine, Russia, and the entire world.” Guterres’ statements come after his recent visit to Moscow and Kyiv to negotiate the evacuation of people from the port city of Mariupol which has been facing the brunt of the war for weeks now.
Briefing the Security Council on his shuttle di-plomacy last week in Russia and Ukraine, Secretary-General Antanio Guterres declared that he “did not mince words” during meetings with Presidents Validimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on the need to end the brutal conflict.
“I said the same thing in Moscow as I did in Kyiv Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a violation of its territorial integrity and of the Charter of the United Nations,” he told the Security Council.
“It must end for the sake of the people of Ukraine, Russia, and the entire world the cycle of death, destruction, dislocation and disruption must stop.” The UN chief said he had gone into an active war zone in Ukraine, after first traveling to Moscow, without much prospect of any ceasefire as the east of the country continues to face “a full-scale ongoing attack”.
Prior to the visit, Ukraine issued an appeal to the UN and to him personally over the “dire plight of civilians” in the devastated city of Mariupol and specifically the Azovstal steel plant.
“In my meeting with President Putin, I therefore stressed the imperative of enabling humanitarian access and evacuations from besieged areas, includ-ing first and foremost, Mariupol,” said Guterres, appealing strongly for a safe and effective humani-tarian corridor for civilians to reach safety from the vast Azovstal plant, where hundreds have been living underground for weeks.
A short time later, he received confirmation of “an agreement in principle”, from the Russian pre-mier.
“We must continue to do all we can to get people out of these hellscapes,” said the UN chief. Reporting on “some measure of success”, Guterres outlined the complex humanitarian operation underway, led by the UN and Red Cross (ICRC).
“It began on 29 April and has required enormous coordination and advocacy with the Russian Federation and Ukrainian authorities,” he elaborated. “So far, two safe passage convoys have been successfully completed.” The first stage at the weekend, saw 101 civilians safely evacuated to safety to the north of Mariupol, while the second phase on Wednesday night, led to “more than 320” from the region finding a safe haven.
While a third operation is underway, Guterres would not provide any details until it is completed, “to avoid undermining possible success”.
“It is good to know that even in these times of hyper-communications, silent diplomacy is still possible and is sometimes the only effective way to produce results,” he stated.
The UN will continue to scale up humanitarian operations, save lives and reduce suffering, said the UN chief, adding that his meetings with both leaders also focused on worldwide food security.
“A meaningful solution to global food insecurity requires reintegrating Ukraine’s agricultural produc-tion and the food and fertilizer production of Russia and Belarus into world markets, despite the war,” he underscored.
The Ukraine war is also setting in motion “a cri-sis that is also devastating global energy markets, disrupting financial systems and exacerbating ex-treme vulnerabilities for the developing world,” said Mr.
Guterres. “The war is senseless in its scope, ruthless in its dimensions and limitless in its potential for global harm. It is high time to unite and end this war,” the Secretary-General concluded.
The head of the UN humanitarian office (OCHA), Martin Griffiths, painted a grim picture of civilian infrastructure destroyed and over 13 million Ukrainians forced to flee their homes, uprooting lives and ripping apart families.
He noted that the elderly and others who could not run, have been unable to seek shelter from bombs, get out to gather supplies or receive infor-mation on evacuations.
And since the war began, threat of gender-based violence has risen with mounting allegations of sexual violence against women, girls, men and boys.
“Roads are heavily contaminated with explosive ordnance, putting civilians at risk and stopping hu-manitarian convoys from reaching them,” added Mr. Griffiths, who also serves as Emergency Relief Co-ordinator.
To meet growing needs, the UN and over 217 humanitarian partners have scaled up at “record speed,” to reach more than 4.1 million people with some form of assistance across the country’s 24 oblasts, or regions.—APP
