Statement by Representative of Slovenia to the UN Security Council Ambassador Samuel Žbogar at the briefing on the maintenance of international peace and security, Ukraine

Thank you very much, Mr. President and thank you very much for organizing the meeting today.

I would also like to thank Assistant Secretary-General Jenča for the briefing. I believe it was useful for the Council to hear the latest on the most extensive conventional war the world has seen in decades.

Mr. President,

In the last two days, we were reminded of the viciousness of this war, when Russia launched one of the largest combined strikes we have seen since its beginning. Almost 300 drones and missiles hit apartment buildings and energy infrastructure across Ukraine, including reportedly a hydropower plant in the Kyiv region. These unabated strikes against civilians and civilian infrastructure are blatantly violating international humanitarian law and need to stop immediately.

And there is no sign that the intensity of fighting is decreasing, to the contrary, as Assistant Secretary-General Jenča said, the UN recorded more than 1200 civilian casualties in July alone, which makes it the deadliest month for civilians in almost two years.

This brings me to my first point. The sheer extent of human life lost to this war instigated by Russia is intolerable and it compels us to look for peace – a just and lasting peace for Ukraine and its people.

As we passed the two and a half year mark from the start of the war, it is high time for a peace process to begin. It is obvious that there cannot be peace without the involvement of and dialogue between all parties. In this regard, we hope that the Russian Federation will demonstrate genuine willingness to end the war and engage in good faith in negotiations, based on international norms and in full respect of the UN Charter.

Secondly, as the war keeps on raging, the stakes are getting higher. This is especially obvious with regard to the safety and security of nuclear power plants in the region. At the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, in the span of a single month, we have seen fire in one of its cooling towers, power outages and a drone strike in direct vicinity of the plant.

The situation is perilous and it will turn into devastating if the seven indispensable pillars for nuclear safety and security and the five basic principles for the protection of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant are not respected. This does not hold just for the nuclear power plants on the internationally recognised territory of Ukraine, but other nuclear power plants and civilian nuclear facilities affected by armed conflict as well.

Colleagues, Slovenia welcomes and fully supports IAEA Director General Grossi’s activities in this regard. We also believe this Council should address the importance of preventing civilian nuclear facilities becoming a target or object of armed conflict. Any attack on civilian nuclear facility or the prevention of its normal operation could result in an unimaginable, long-term humanitarian and environmental disaster. We are ready to engage in order to prevent this.

Mr. President,

It is devastating to see this war expanding in the territories it engulfs and in destruction it causes. This however does not absolve the Council from its duty to ensure international peace and security, including in Ukraine. Slovenia will not cease with its endeavours to build trust in order to secure the future of Ukrainians, and Russians for that matter, with a just and lasting peace.

Thank you.

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