The UN Secretary General, António Guterres, met this Wednesday in Kiev with the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, to “look for solutions” that allow a “just peace” to be reached for the conflict that has been going on for a year.
“Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity must be maintained within its internationally recognized borders,” Guterres said at the start of the meeting.
“Our ultimate goal is equally clear, a just peace based on the United Nations Charter, international law and the recent General Assembly resolution,” added the UN Secretary General.
Guterres stressed that until this goal is achieved, the UN will continue its efforts to mitigate the impact of the conflict on both the Ukrainian population and the rest of the world.
The United Nations leader took the opportunity to recall that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has mobilized to safeguard the safety of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, including Zaporojia, the largest in Europe.
The UN Secretary General defended that it is possible to negotiate to achieve the complete demilitarization of the area of these plants, as well as their return to normal operation, and offered to mediate in these negotiations.
Zelensky used his account on the Telegram social network to share images of the reception to the UN Secretary General, referring to the importance of the visit.
“It is very important that we talk in Kiev about how to restore peace, international security and the full validity of the UN Charter, norms that are equally important for all nations on the planet,” the Ukrainian president wrote.
The military offensive launched on February 24, 2022 by Russia in Ukraine has so far caused the flight of more than 14.6 million people -6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 8.1 million to European countries-, according to the latest data from the UN, which classifies this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
Right now, at least 18 million Ukrainians are in need of humanitarian aid and 9.3 million are in need of food aid and shelter.
The Russian invasion – justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the wider international community, which has responded by sending weapons to Ukraine and imposing Russia from the political point of view and economic sanctions.
The UN presented 8,173 civilian deaths and 13,620 wounded as confirmed since the start of the war, emphasizing that these figures are far below the real ones.
Source: TSF
