Guterres Tries To Justify His Visit To Putin

• 26.10.2024, 10:21

Couldn't stand the criticism.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tried to justify his visit to the BRICS summit in Russia, saying that during his meeting with the Russian dictator he called for a just peace in Ukraine and stressed the need to uphold the values of the UN Charter.

Guterres reported this on his X (Twitter) page.

“In the BRICS session, I called for a just peace in Ukraine in line with the UN Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions. I emphasized that everywhere, we must uphold the values of the UN Charter, the rule of law, and the principles of sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of States,” he wrote.

Guterres also claims that during his meeting with Putin, he stressed that “the Russian invasion of Ukraine was in violation of the UN Charter & international law”.

He also emphasized his “strong support” for the establishment of an agreement for safe navigation in the Black Sea, an essential avenue for global food security.

The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry criticized UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for attending the BRICS summit at the invitation of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. Ukrainian diplomats were particularly outraged by the fact that Guterres refused to attend the Ukrainian Peace Summit in Switzerland in the summer.

American and European diplomats also negatively assessed Guterres' visit to Russia. In particular, former US Ambassador to NATO and Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker criticized the UN Secretary-General for skipping the peace summit on Ukraine but attending the BRICS summit. Volker emphasized how much the obvious lack of balance undermines Guterres' authority in resolving peace issues in Ukraine.

And Bundestag member Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann said that the UN under Guterres' leadership “is a shameful and ineffective shadow of its former self.”