UN Secretary-General António Guterres today defended an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza and called for peace in Lebanon and Ukraine, when speaking at the meeting of the BRICS, a bloc of the main emerging economies, with the countries of the Global South .
“We need peace everywhere. We need peace in Gaza with an immediate ceasefire and an immediate and unconditional release of all hostages,” Guterres said during the meeting, held in the Russian city of Kazan, where the summit ends today of the BRICS, hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In his intervention, and also regarding the situation in the Middle East and the various combat fronts (Gaza and Lebanon), the UN leader said it was necessary to distribute humanitarian aid effectively and make “irreversible” progress to “end the occupation Israeli” and implement the two-state solution (Palestine and Israel).
“We need peace in Lebanon, with an immediate cessation of hostilities, moving forward in the full implementation of Security Council resolution 1701”, added Guterres, recently declared ‘persona non grata’ by the Israeli Government, when referring to the resolution that placed a end to a conflict between Israel and the pro-Iranian Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah in 2006.
Resolution 1701 provides for the cessation of hostilities on both sides of the border and that only UN peacekeeping forces and the Lebanese army can be deployed in southern Lebanon.
On Russian soil, Guterres also called for peace in Ukraine: “A just peace, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations, international law and the resolutions of the General Assembly.”
The Russian military offensive on Ukrainian territory, launched on February 24, 2022, plunged Europe into what is considered the most serious security crisis since the Second World War (1939-1945).
The UN Secretary-General also called for an agreement in Sudan and the defense of “the values of the United Nations Charter, the rule of law and the principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of all States”.
Today marks United Nations Day, which marks the anniversary of the entry into force, in 1945, of the United Nations Charter.
The UN Secretary-General also recalled the four challenges that the Future Summit, promoted by the multilateral organization last September, established for the areas of finance, climate, technology and peace.
“The Future Summit marked the path to strengthen multilateralism, global development and security. Now we must turn words into actions”, concluded Guterres.
On the sidelines of the BRICS summit, a meeting between Guterres and Putin is expected, the first meeting between the two representatives since 2022.
The BRICS group, founded informally in 2006 and which held its first summit in 2009, includes countries that represent around a third of the world economy and more than 40% of the global population.
Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Ethiopia, Iran, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates are currently part of the bloc.
