On behalf of the European members of the UNSC – Denmark, France, Greece, the United Kingdom and Slovenia – the following statement was delivered by the Permanent Representative of Slovenia to the UN H.E. Samuel Žbogar:

“I would like to give a statement on behalf of the governments of Slovenia, Denmark, France, Greece and the United Kingdom.

Today the Security Council discussed Ukraine in a closed setting. Russia attempted to exclude Ukraine from this discussion. To achieve lasting peace, all the parties to the war need to be included. Ukraine must be part of discussions about peace in Ukraine. For this reason, we pushed to ensure their participation in this Council discussion.

At the consultations, we reiterated our dedication towards putting an end to Russia’s war of aggression and reaching a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in Ukraine. With this in mind, we welcomed the diplomatic efforts led by the US to achieve a comprehensive ceasefire. We call on Russia to agree to a full, unconditional ceasefire and act towards an enduring peace in Europe.

Ukraine wants peace and has demonstrated this by agreeing to a full, immediate, and unconditional ceasefire five weeks ago. At the consultations today, Russia again rejected the comprehensive ceasefire and refused to make its first step towards peace.

The meeting came after Russia launched a series of deadly aerial attacks throughout Ukraine. Most alarmingly in Sumy, where at least 35 civilians, including two children, lost their lives to Russian missiles last Sunday. In Kyrvyi Rih, the previous week, a similar attack killed 20 people including nine children. We condemn these attacks. Attacks directed against civilians and civilian objects are prohibited under international law and are further removing us from a much-needed ceasefire and peace agreement.

We reaffirm our unwavering support for Ukraine and echo the Secretary-General’s call for a durable ceasefire and meaningful efforts towards a just, lasting and comprehensive peace that fully upholds Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, in line with the UN Charter, international law, and relevant UN resolutions.”

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