Checked Against Delivery
Thank you, Madam President,
And I thank Assistant-Secretary General Pobee for her briefing.
Let me start by recalling Denmark’s consistent demand that international law, including International Humanitarian Law, must be respected in all cases. Without exception. And our demand for full accountability and justice for all crimes that have been committed in this senseless war, launched by Russia.
The allegations made by Belarus and Russia of a drone strike on a civilian bus in Bryansk, in Russia, on 17 of June are serious. However, as our briefer has made clear, it has not been possible to verify these allegations, and they are also at odds with the information provided by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Given this divergence, Denmark calls for an independent investigation to establish the facts.
Madam President,
If Russia was genuinely concerned about civilians, there is a very simple solution. That is to end its illegal and unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine, immediately. Until that day, until it ceases its daily violations of the Charter, its expressions of concern will continue to ring hollow.
We should not forget that Ukraine has been offering a ceasefire for well over a year. Russia, on the other hand, has chosen to prolong the war, with each day bringing further death, destruction and misery to civilians.
Madam President,
Russia has supported the request from Belarus for this urgent meeting while continuing daily attacks on Ukraine. In the last 24 hours alone, Russian drones and missiles have killed and injured many Ukrainian civilians, including in Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Kharkiv Oblast, and Sumy Oblast.
In the 1,587 days since Russia’s full-scale invasion, the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission has verified that at least 62,000 Ukrainian civilians have been killed or injured. Behind these numbers are families, futures, and communities, destroyed or shattered. They deserve justice and accountability.
Consequently, we call on Russia to end its tactics of denial, distraction and deflection. To end the invasion it alone started, and that it alone can end today. We reiterate our call for good faith peace talks aimed at securing a just and lasting peace in line with the UN Charter.
I thank you.
