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As we mark this grim anniversary, I want to reflect on three personal encounters I’ve had with Ukrainians from all walks of life. They show what Russia’s illegal and unprovoked war is doing to civilians, to vital infrastructure, and fundamentally to the rules we are all here to uphold, our United Nations Charter. First, a year ago, I visited Bucha, and there, I met a priest who told me of shocking atrocities carried ...
As we mark this grim anniversary, I want to reflect on three personal encounters I’ve had with Ukrainians from all walks of life. They show what Russia’s illegal and unprovoked war is doing to civilians, to vital infrastructure, and fundamentally to the rules we are all here to uphold, our United Nations Charter. First, a year ago, I visited Bucha, and there, I met a priest who told me of shocking atrocities carried out by the Russians. He recalled how he dug graves for members of his own congregation after the massacre and swapped his robes for civilian clothes after a fellow priest was killed. That conversation stays with me because it shows how Russia wages this war. And today, not withstanding the false claims by the Russian Representative in the General Assembly, its forces continue to strike Ukrainian civilians and communities with missiles and drones, killing and destroying. And I should add, of course, the same disregard for civilian lives is not just evident in Ukraine, it is also evident in the killing of Alexei Navalny, which we are confident was the result of lethal poisoning. Second, last September, I met children who had been forcibly taken from occupied Ukrainian territory by Russian forces. They told me how they were separated from their families, with new identities imposed upon them. I have a picture in my office, painted by a Ukrainian child who had escaped Russia, now undergoing therapy to deal with the ordeal they have endured. Russia is doing this to tens of thousands of children - using them as tools of war. And I have to ask the Russian representative, is there no shame? This must end. And third, last month, I spoke to schoolchildren in Kyiv via videolink from a school in East London. They told me how happy they were that day to be in their classroom learning, like all children should be able to, because regular powercuts kept disrupting their lessons due to attacks near their school and their homes. Children all over Ukraine are enduring days and nights marked by air raid sirens and blackouts, by fear and loss. Save the Children reports that Ukrainian children have endured four thousand hours of air raid alarms since the start of the full-scale invasion. That’s equivalent to more than five months of constant alert. This is taking a severe toll on their mental health. A generation is being robbed of the security and peace that every child in this world deserves. And there is no respite, even during the brutal cold of winter. Let us speak the truth in this place. Russia is relentlessly targeting civilian infrastructure. Since October, it has launched twenty mass attacks on Ukraine’s energy system, firing more than one thousand missiles. It has struck again and again, leaving hospitals without power, schools unable to function, and families facing winter in darkness and cold. What has stayed with me, after meeting Ukrainians from all walks of life, is their incredible courage in the face of this barbarity. It has earned them the respect of people the world over. And the United Kingdom stands by their side, and our people stand by their side every day. Our support is practical, and it is sustained: We are strengthening air defences. We are helping Ukraine keep essential services running when power is cut. We are supporting Ukraine to enable the return of stolen children. And we are pursuing justice and accountability through international mechanisms. Today, we have announced a £30 million package for emergency energy support, humanitarian assistance, and justice and accountability in Ukraine. This builds on billions of pounds of UK support, guarantees and direct military aid to Ukraine since 2022. We will continue to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes to achieve a just and lasting peace, and beyond. This also means keeping up the pressure on Russia and choking off their war machine. And that is why today we have been announcing our largest package of measures since 2022, targeting oil revenues and components fuelling that war machine. And we are working with partners across this Council and beyond to defend the UN Charter because Russia’s war is illegal and unprovoked. It is an assault on the Charter’s foundational principles: respect for sovereignty and for territorial integrity. We call again on Russia to comply with international law. And we are pressing it to engage meaningfully in the US-led peace process. Along with France, we are also leading the Coalition of the Willing to support Ukraine now and to ensure that peace endures. Ukraine has made clear its readiness for peace, but Russia has not. Instead, it continues to escalate attacks on civilians while stalling negotiations. So, let us be clear again in this place about what peace requires: a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire; a settlement resulting in a sovereign, secure and independent Ukraine; all the stolen children and prisoners of war returned; and justice for the crimes committed. That is what every Ukrainian deserves. And it is our responsibility as members of this Council to demand it.
Speech Brief