The UN Secretary-General called for restraint and negotiation on all sides in the Ukraine crisis
According to IRNA, the UN Secretary General returned to New York on Tuesday night following the cancellation of his visit to the Congo due to the action of Russian President Vladimir Putin to recognize the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics.
“Our world is facing the biggest crisis of peace and security in recent years during my tenure as Secretary-General of the United Nations,” Guterres told reporters. We are facing a situation that I sincerely hoped would not happen.
“I am deeply concerned about recent developments in Ukraine, including reports of increasing border violations and the risk of escalating tensions,” he said.
“Russia’s decision to recognize the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions is a violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Guterres said.
He stated: “Such a unilateral action is contrary to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and also contrary to the declaration of friendly relations of the General Assembly.”
The UN Secretary-General added: “This decision is also a fatal blow to the Minsk agreement approved by the Security Council.
“I am also concerned about the perversion of the concept of peacekeeping,” the senior UN official said. They are not peacekeepers when the army of one country enters its territory without the consent of another.
“The United Nations fully supports Ukraine’s sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity,” Guterres said. At this critical time, I call for an immediate ceasefire and the re-establishment of the rule of law.
“We need restraint and logic and the reduction of tensions,” he said. I call on all parties to refrain from taking actions that aggravate this dangerous situation. Now is the time to return to the path of dialogue and negotiation.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s spokesman Stephen Dujarric also told reporters that the Security Council met last night on Ukraine, and UN Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo told members that the danger of a major conflict was real and should be avoided at all costs.
He recalled the UN Secretary-General’s remarks that Russia’s decision to recognize the independence of some Donetsk and Luhansk regions violates Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty and is contrary to the principles of the UN Charter.
“We are very sorry for this decision, which has regional and global consequences,” DiCarlo said.
The UN Secretary-General also called on all parties to work for an immediate end to hostilities, to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure, to prioritize diplomacy, and to refrain from any action or declaration that could jeopardize the situation. Intensify in Ukraine and its surroundings.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michel Bachelet also said he was deeply concerned about the risk of serious human rights abuses as well as violations of international humanitarian law as a result of any escalation of military action.
Bachelet added that the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) continues to monitor closely the situation in eastern Ukraine.
Criticizing the West’s indifference to Moscow’s security concerns, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that his country recognizes the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics and signed cooperation and friendship agreements with their leaders at the Kremlin.
Putin made the remarks hours after hearing reports from members of Russia’s Security Council that he would announce today that he would announce his decision to recognize the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics.
Last week, the Russian Duma sent a request to Putin to recognize the independence of the Donbass separatists from Ukraine.
The Donbass region in eastern Ukraine is made up of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, as well as several other Russian-populated regions, and the two provinces unilaterally declared independence from Kiev in 2014 after a change of government in Ukraine.