UN Secretariat building in New York. UN Secretary General: “During the meeting with Putin, I emphasized that the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine is a violation of the UN Charter” UN
During a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the BRICS summit, “representing almost half the world’s population,” the UN Secretary-General stressed that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine violates the UN Charter and international law. Antonio Guterres wrote about this on Friday in a message on the X social platform, returning from Kazan to New York.
“At the [summit] session, I stressed that I call for peace in Ukraine in accordance with the UN Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions,” the UN chief said. – I also stressed that I strongly support the idea of concluding an agreement on safe navigation in the Black Sea, a critical channel for ensuring global food security.”
According to the UN Secretary-General, in his speech in Kazan he emphasized that the values of the UN Charter, as well as the principles of the rule of law, sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of states must be respected everywhere.
Possibility of a visit by the Secretary-General to Ukraine
The UN is “working to find a time that is convenient for everyone” for the Secretary-General’s visit to Ukraine. As UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said at a briefing today, the idea of such a visit was discussed during a meeting between António Guterres and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at a General Assembly meeting in September.
During the briefing, one of the journalists asked the Deputy Spokesperson how the UN chief’s communication with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the BRICS summit in Kazan correlated with the fact that the International Criminal Court had issued an arrest warrant for him. In response to this question, Farhan Haq noted that any interaction by any UN officials, including the Secretary-General, with people who have been indicted “should be strictly based on operational necessity.”
“There are very specific operational issues that need to be addressed,” the UN Deputy Spokesperson said. “We have concerns about the war in Ukraine. We are concerned about the safety of navigation in the Black Sea. Any communication in itself helps to advance the matter. This is precisely the reason for holding such a meeting.”