|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Mr. President,
When I last briefed this Council on developments in Ukraine exactly one month ago, there was cautious hope of progress on the diplomatic front to stop the fighting.
Regrettably, instead of steps towards peace, we witnessed a brutal surge in large-scale Russian attacks across the country.
This escalation comes after a relative reduction in the intensity of attacks, including the unilateral 72-hour truce declared by the Russian Federation from 8 to 11 May.
For three consecutive nights last weekend, Russian armed forces attacked Ukrainian cities and towns with record numbers of long-range missiles and drones, killing and injuring dozens of civilians.
Most of the casualties were recorded in Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa and Mykolaiv, as well as in other densely populated areas.
On Monday, 26 May, at least six people were reportedly killed and 24 injured across the country, including in the Donetsk, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Odesa and Mykolaiv regions.
According to Ukrainian officials, with 355 drones, Monday’s attack was the largest drone attack on Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
This topped the previous record from the night before.
On Sunday, 25 May, 12 people, including three children, were reportedly killed and more than 60 others were injured when missiles and drones hit Kyiv and other locations in the Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytsky, Ternopil, Dnipropetrovsk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Sumy, and Poltava regions.
More than 80 residential buildings were reportedly damaged.
On Saturday, 24 May, at least 15 people, including two minors, were reportedly injured in a Russian strike on Kyiv. Elsewhere, at least 13 people were reportedly killed – four people in the Donetsk region, five in the Kherson and Odesa regions, and four in the Kharkiv region. The Dnipro and Zaporizhzhia regions were also hit.
In addition, Sumy region in the northeast of Ukraine has been hit particularly hard by continuous cross-border heavy shelling.
On 17 May – only hours after Russian and Ukrainian delegations met in Istanbul – a Russian drone strike on a civilian bus in Bilopillia in Sumy region reportedly killed nine people and injured seven others. Among those killed were three members of the same family – a mother, a father and their daughter.
In total, since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, at least 13,279 civilians, including 707 children, have been killed. The confirmed number of civilians injured stands at 32,449, including 2,068 children.
The overall security situation so far in 2025 is significantly worse than in the same period last year. Civilian deaths in the first quarter of this year are 59 percent higher than in the same period of 2024.
Mr. President,
Since my last briefing, Russian regions bordering Ukraine also reported civilian casualties.
According to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, nine civilians were killed, and 117 were injured because of Ukrainian strikes from 19 to 25 May.
The Ministry also reported that from 12 to 18 May, 17 Russian civilians were killed, and more than 100 others were injured, following Ukrainian attacks on Russian border regions, bringing the total for the month of May to 59 killed, including five children, and more than 400 others injured, including 21 children.
The United Nations is not able to verify these reports.
However, if confirmed, these figures serve as a vivid reminder of the rising civilian toll of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, most egregiously in Ukraine, but also increasingly in the Russian Federation itself.
Let me reiterate clearly: attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure are strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law.
They are unacceptable and indefensible – wherever they occur – and must stop immediately.
My colleague, Lisa Doughton, of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs will provide updates about the impacts of the renewed attacks on the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and our response to deliver life-saving aid to all those in need.
Mr. President,
The latest dangerous escalation follows some significant diplomatic developments.
On 16 May, Ukrainian and Russian delegations met in Istanbul for the first direct negotiations in three years.
We welcome these talks and commend the important role of Türkiye and the United States in facilitating these discussions.
While the talks did not result in the much-needed, complete, immediate and unconditional ceasefire that the Secretary-General has called for, it is encouraging that the sides have reportedly agreed to continue the process.
We also welcome an important result of these talks – the recently completed phased exchange of 1,000 prisoners of war on each side.
We hope that all remaining prisoners of war and civilian detainees will soon return home.
Mr. President,
Throughout the war, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has reported on the human rights violations in the territories of Ukraine occupied by the Russian Federation.
The Independent Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine, meanwhile, continues to investigate alleged violations and abuses of human rights and international humanitarian law in Ukraine.
Just yesterday the Commission reported on allegations of systematic drone attacks by Russian forces targeting civilians in Kherson.
The impact of the war on children is particularly heartbreaking: More than 5.1 million children have been displaced from their homes.
One in five children has lost a relative or friend since 2022. And the fate of Ukrainian children reportedly deported to the Russian Federation remains a question of deep concern.
Mr. President,
The massive wave of attacks over the weekend is a stark warning of how quickly this war can reach new destructive levels.
Further escalation would not only aggravate the devastating toll on civilians but also endanger the already challenging peace efforts.
The longer the war continues, the longer its regional and global impacts will be felt, and the more difficult it will be to find a peaceful resolution.
The United Nations position has been and remains principled in support of Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, within its internationally recognized borders.
We continue to call for peace in line with the UN Charter, international law and relevant UN resolutions.
In February, the Security Council adopted resolution 2774 (2025) – the first since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – imploring a swift end to the conflict and urging a lasting peace.
And soon after passage of the resolution, after more than three years of brutal, illegal war, the global community was heartened by what appeared to be the first sprouts of a potential peace process.
However, anticipation and excitement quickly gave way to frustration around the world and more suffering in Ukraine following the recent and massive Russian attacks.
The hope that the parties will be able to sit down and negotiate is still alive, but just barely.
Serious, demonstrable and good faith efforts are needed – now – to get back on the road that could lead to a just peace. A full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire is such an effort, if only an initial one.
A peace process will not be easy, and it will take time. But it must not wait. The people of Ukraine, especially, cannot wait.
Thank you.
A glimmer of hope for peace in Ukraine has been overshadowed by a devastating new wave of Russian attacks, UN officials told the Security Council on Thursday, warning of soaring civilian casualties and a worsening humanitarian crisis that could derail a diplomatic end to the war.
Desperate hunger drove crowds of people to overrun a World Food Programme (WFP) warehouse in central Gaza on Wednesday, reportedly leaving two dead and several injured in a chaotic scramble for food.
The United Nations honoured staff serving at its field missions through several events to mark the International Day of UN Peacekeepers on Thursday.
In 2022, the war in Ukraine, the rollback of gains in Afghanistan, worsening violence in Haiti and continuing conflict in Myanmar, Syria and Somalia, among others, took a staggering toll on hundreds of millions of people. Meanwhile, growing global tensions further strained an already weakened multilateral system.
Unquestionably, DPPA continued to face challenges that at times may seem insurmountable. But even in a global political environment beset by tensions and division, we know that
Global tensions impact our resources too. There was a call for increased investment in prevention, peacemaking, and peacebuilding, even as resources are curtailed globally. Last year, the Department adapted its work to a landscape of economic and financial contraction, prioritizing areas where it could have a tangible impact.
DPPA continued to rely on financing through the Multi-Year Appeal (MYA) and recorded positive results in 2022. Against a volatile funding environment, a record high level of contributions of $36.4 million was received from 31 donors. This is the highest of all MYA contributions in past years and shows a 22 per cent increase compared to 2021.
The MYA also became more agile, allowing us to deploy when and where it was the most needed. The level of earmarking decreased by 17% compared to the previous year, expanding our ability to respond quickly and with flexibility to requests for support. With 60% of its funding unearmarked, DPPA was able to balance demands for crisis response with the need to invest in long-term prevention, peacebuilding and sustaining peace.
The present report shows how effective operational deployments and engagement with the right partners and actors can make a difference, all at relatively low cost. The MYA critically augments DPPA’s capacities. As a funding mechanism, the MYA is exponentially increasing our ability to deliver on our mandate. Its booster effect is simple:
The value dimensions of the MYA are demonstrated in the graph below, highlighting the activities and the capacities funded by the MYA with $1 million.
DPPA continued to lead over 24 field missions around the world. MYA funding provides vital operational support to Special Representatives and Special Envoys.
Our support drawn from the MYA was instrumental to mediation efforts in Yemen leading to a truce in April 2022. While the truce has lapsed, there has not been a major escalation in military conflict. In Sudan, MYA funding allowed DPPA to provide support in critical areas, supporting the ceasefire monitoring mechanism established by the Juba Peace Agreement. And in Colombia, we expanded our support to peace consolidation by verifying two transformational areas of the 2016 Peace and by offering good offices support for resumed talks with the National Liberation Army.
In a world of growing polarization, DPPA maintained its recognized role of mediator, fielding 400 deployments around the world to support mediation, peacemaking and electoral processes. We deployed staff or senior mediators of our Standby Team more than 132 times at short notice to assist peace negotiations. Deployments are made throughout the world.
DPPA always looks at electoral assistance with a prevention lens. We provided electoral support to around 50 Member States last year.
We were innovative in the search for lasting solutions to peace and security threats and drastically increased the development of initiatives using new technologies, investing 7% of our MYA resources into new ideas and approaches.
Investments under our women, peace and security window reached new heights, with close to 20% of the MYA portfolio dedicated to activities in pursuit of the agenda. Investment in the Local Peace Initiatives window grew steadily as we continued to channel resources to grassroots peace initiatives to complement broader national processes. Inclusion, particularly of civil society, women’s and youth groups, remained a key focus of investment under this window.
When we and our partners speak with one voice, we are better able to encourage conflict parties to pursue a negotiated solution. Partnerships with Member States, regional and subregional organizations, and civil society are all supported by voluntary contributions. In 2022, DPPA worked with regional and sub-subregional organizations in more than 55 of its mediation engagements, to address pressing challenges.
The nine liaison offices, all funded by the MYA, are essential in our preventive and peacemaking work. For example, our liaison office in Ukraine, provided real-time monitoring and analytical support to DPPA.
DPPA recently issued its Strategic Plan, accompanied by a new Multi-Year
Appeal, calling for a total of $170 million for 2023-2026.
Voluntary funding is more important than ever. It continues to demonstrate its relevance, augmenting DPPA’s capacities to be more operational and funding all our work in thematic areas at the heart of Our Common Agenda and the New Agenda for Peace, such as climate security, women and youth and peace and security, and new technologies and innovation.
As of today, $7 million has been received for 2022, out of the $41 million called for. With a funding gap of 83%, the MYA urgently needs your support this year.
In early summer 2024, Squadron Leader Sharon Mwinsote Syme of Ghana ventured into sector North of Abyei, a disputed region between Sudan and South Sudan where she was deployed as a military gender advocate with the UN Interim Security Force in Abyei (UNISFA).
The United Nations has called for restraint following another wave of escalation between Houthi rebels in Yemen and Israeli forces.
Gaza’s population is being “starved and denied the very basics,” while the region stands at a dangerous crossroads, the UN’s Middle East peace envoy warned the Security Council Wednesday, urging immediate action to halt the violence, restore aid and advance a two-State solution before time runs out.
Russian drone attacks against civilians in the Kherson region of Ukraine constitute crimes against humanity and war crimes, independent UN-appointed human rights investigators concluded in a new report published on Wednesday.
In Gaza, dozens of Palestinians have been reportedly injured and shot trying to collect aid from the new US and Israeli-backed aid distribution facility operating independently of the UN.
Mr. President,
Excellencies, and Distinguished Delegates,
We are grateful to the President of the General Assembly for convening and chairing this meeting. Today’s discussion provides us with an important opportunity to hear Member States’ views and suggestions as we work to implement the request in the Pact for the Future for the Secretary-General to conduct a review on the future of all forms of UN peace operations.
We are confident that this is the beginning of a series of useful engagements between the Secretariat and Member States, building towards our common goal of ensuring that United Nations peace operations remain effective today and in the future.
Peacekeeping operations and special political missions are essential instruments of multilateral action for peace. For nearly eight decades, these operations have enabled the United Nations to deliver tailored responses to critical peace and security challenges, including mobilizing and funding Member State capacities beyond the reach of any single actor.
Over the past few years, however, we see the emergence of a number of global trends which are shaping the work of the United Nations, including that of peace operations. These trends, presented in the Secretary-General’s A New Agenda for Peace, have only solidified – or intensified -- since the document was issued:
Today, growing geopolitical fragmentation at both global and regional levels has led to increasing divergences of opinion, especially within the Security Council and among host states, around how peace operations should function, what mandates they should be given, and under what circumstances they should be deployed.
Meanwhile, peace operations confront an evolving and more complex conflict landscape:
And yet, just as these threats are converging, increased competition at the geostrategic level is making international cooperation to address them more difficult.
In light of these challenges facing peace operations, there is a clear need to reflect on their future.
This is why we welcome the request in the Pact for the Future for a review of the future of all forms of UN peace operations. This request is an opportunity to examine the entire spectrum of UN peace operations and produce recommendations to ensure that they are better equipped to respond to current and emerging challenges, and that they receive the political support needed to implement their mandates. DPO and DPPA are jointly conducting this review, which will be finalized in early 2026.
We have also begun internal consultations across the UN system to help shape the review. Importantly, we had an initial discussion with all Special Representatives and Envoys leading peace operations. We will continue consulting closely with our peace operations to ensure that their experience and views inform the review.
Finally, I also want to note that, as a substantive input into the review, DPPA will soon release a comprehensive compendium of special political missions – the most complete historical record of their work to date. Beyond cataloguing the missions established since 1948, it offers a window into how these missions have evolved amid geopolitical tensions and shifting global dynamics, and how they have adapted to support Member States in their efforts to uphold international peace and security.
I look forward to hearing your view today. Thank you.
As a controversial United States and Israel-backed aid distribution plan gets underway in Gaza, the UN called on Tuesday for an “immediate surge” of its own pre-positioned supplies to help prevent starvation.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has called for an immediate end to the daily killings and destruction across Ukraine, following a weekend of deadly attacks that left at least 14 civilians – including three children – dead and dozens more injured.
Myanmar’s spiralling human rights crisis – fuelled by relentless military violence, systemic impunity and economic collapse – has left civilians caught in the crossfire of an increasingly brutal conflict, according to a new report by the UN human rights office (OHCHR).
After another deadly weekend of Israeli attacks in Gaza, aid teams stressed once again on Monday that the “trickle” of supplies being allowed into the war-torn enclave will not halt famine.
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) has deplored a deadly wave of Russian missile and drone strikes that reportedly killed at least 13 civilians and injured 65 others, warning that the attack underscores the grave risks of using powerful explosive weapons in populated areas.
THE UN SECRETARY-GENERAL''S MESSAGE ON AFRICA DAY
25 May 2025
On Africa Day, we celebrate a continent rich in heritage, vibrant in diversity and remarkable in its contributions to our global community.
Africa is home to the world’s youngest population and fast becoming a powerhouse in renewable energy and technological innovation.
...Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,
It is my pleasure to deliver today’s closing remarks on behalf of the Secretary-General.
Let me begin by expressing our deep appreciation to France and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for their leadership of the High-Level International Conference on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine. Your steadfast commitment to fostering international engagement and action on this central issue at this critical juncture is commendable.
I would also like to extend our appreciation to the co-chairs of the various working groups for their valuable contributions and updates at today’s preparatory meeting.
We gather at a time of profound turbulence in the Middle East. The region is racked by escalating violence and uncertainty. Hope continues to erode.
Yet, even amid this turmoil, there is potential for opportunity and positive transformation — for peace rooted in justice, for prosperity shared by all, and for full dignity for Israelis and Palestinians.
But we must be clear: a sustainable and comprehensive peace in the Middle East is unattainable without a just resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This is not a peripheral issue, nor one to be indefinitely postponed. It is the longest-standing question on the UN peace and security agenda.
It lies at the very heart of regional instability, which ripples well beyond the Middle East. It undermines prospects for development, erodes human rights, and feeds a tragic cycle of resentment and violence.
As the Secretary-General stated in his recent briefing to the Security Council, “the promise of a two-State solution is at risk of dwindling to the point of disappearance. The political commitment to this long-standing goal is farther than it has ever been. As a result, the rights of both Israelis and Palestinians to live in peace and security have been undermined – and the legitimate national aspirations of the Palestinians have been denied – while they endure Israel’s continued presence that the International Court of Justice has found unlawful.”
There are no shortcuts, and there is no substitute for a negotiated two-State solution: a viable, sovereign, and independent State of Palestine, living side by side in peace and security with the State of Israel.
We cannot let this slip away.
Without urgent and concerted action, we risk the irreversible collapse of the international consensus around a viable two-State solution — and the entrenchment of an unjust status quo.
Let us reaffirm today that both peoples — Palestinians and Israelis — have the right to live in peace, security, and dignity. That security cannot be imposed by military means. It must be built through justice, mutual recognition, and the fulfillment of rights.
The entrenched occupation, the expansion of illegal settlements, violence against civilians, and the growing humanitarian crisis in the Occupied Palestinian Territory are not only morally indefensible — they are politically unsustainable.
A different path is still possible — one grounded in international law, the principles of the UN Charter, and the shared interests of all peoples in the region.
Taking that path requires courage, clarity, and commitment.
The upcoming High-Level International Conference in June offers a rare and vital opportunity. It must not become yet another rhetorical exercise.
The Conference must serve as a turning point. It must galvanize irreversible steps toward ending the occupation, unifying the West Bank and Gaza under a single, legitimate Palestinian authority, and establishing our shared goal of a viable two-State solution.
Most of all, it must place the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination — long denied — at the center of the international agenda.
Israelis and Palestinians deserve peace, security, and dignity. A future of endless conflict is not inevitable. But to stave it off, we need decisive and principled leadership and action.
We have no time to lose.
Thank you.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Long-awaited food supplies have been looted in Gaza overnight while being transported to desperate communities in the war-torn enclave, UN aid teams reported on Friday.
Millions of people in Syria continue to face mortal danger from unexploded munitions, disease and malnutrition and more international support is urgently required, senior UN aid officials said on Friday.
The UN Secretary-General on Friday outlined a five-stage plan to provide lifesaving aid to the stricken population of Gaza, making clear the organization will not take part in any scheme that fails to respect international law or basic humanitarian principles.
Diplomats convened at UN Headquarters in New York on Friday to lay the groundwork for a crucial international conference in June, aimed at advancing global efforts towards achieving a two-State solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
The UN on Friday warned of further deterioration in the human rights situation in South Sudan amid an uptick in hostilities, arbitrary arrests and hate speech since February.
UN agencies in Gaza confirmed on Thursday that desperately needed aid has finally arrived at warehouses inside the enclave after an 11-week blockade by Israeli authorities.
With more than 36,000 civilian deaths recorded in conflict zones in 2024 and sexual violence surging, senior UN officials warn that the international framework designed to protect civilians is collapsing.
The United Kingdom agreed to cede its control over the Chagos Islands to the Republic of Mauritius in an agreement signed between the two countries on Thursday.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has strongly condemned the “appalling killing” of two Israeli embassy officials in the United States capital, stressing that “nothing can justify such a horrific act,” his Spokesperson said in a statement on Thursday.
We're live as the Security Council convenes for its annual open debate on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, with the UN relief chief and the head of UN Women calling for urgent action to safeguard lives – especially those of women and girls caught in the crossfire. Non-combatants in Gaza, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan and Ukraine are among the hardest-hit. Mobile app users can follow here.
Israel forces opened fire on a diplomatic delegation near the Jenin camp in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, drawing condemnation from several governments and the UN.
After years of stalemate and suffering, Syria is beginning to see renewed international engagement.
Noor, a 16-month-old toddler, is from the Lahj governorate in the southwest corner of Yemen. A UN-partner volunteer diagnosed her with severe malnutrition – and her story became headline news when the UN relief chief recounted it to the Security Council during an impassioned briefing last week.
