Russia blocked a draft resolution on the situation in Sudan during a vote in the Security Council. Top news of the day | Monday: Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan, Caspian Sea UN
Top news of the day in the UN and in the world: 1,000 days since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Security Council on the crisis in the Middle East, Russia blocked a draft resolution on the situation in Sudan, the Caspian Sea was discussed at COP-29.
Ukraine: 1,000 days of war
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk condemned the latest wave of Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy grid over the weekend. He recalled that on Tuesday Ukraine marks the tragic milestone of 1,000 days since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. In October alone, Russian troops launched about 2,000 drones – an average of more than 60 per day, the High Commissioner said in a statement. Humanitarian Coordinator Matthias Schmale condemned yesterday and today’s attacks on Sumy and Odessa. According to local authorities, dozens of civilians were killed and wounded, including children.
Middle East conflict
The war between Hamas and Israel has spread across the region, involving armed groups from several countries and covering more and more areas of Lebanon. This was stated by the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Thor Wennesland at a ministerial meeting of the UN Security Council. He recalled that Palestinian groups are still holding hostages, mass evacuations are continuing in Lebanon, the scale of destruction is growing, and a humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding in Gaza. Any long-term strategy, he said, must be aimed at achieving a two-state solution, ending the occupation and respecting the Palestinians’ right to self-determination.
Security Council on Sudan
Russia has vetoed a draft Security Council resolution on the protection of civilians in Sudan, which would have called on the parties to the conflict in the country to immediately cease hostilities. Commenting on the decision, Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky said that the only path to peace is for the parties to reach an agreement that should not be imposed by the Security Council. In turn, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy, whose country holds the presidency of the Council in November, said that Russia’s veto condemns the Sudanese to further suffering.
Saving the Caspian
The Caspian Sea is at the epicenter of a triple planetary crisis: climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental pollution. The Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Inger Andersen said this while speaking at the UN Climate Conference (COP-29) in Baku during an event dedicated to the problems of this reservoir. Andersen emphasized that if the situation does not change, the water level in the Caspian Sea could fall by 18 meters by the end of the century. According to her, this is not just an environmental disaster – it is a socio-economic crisis that could lead to the forced displacement of five million people by 2050.