EPA-EFE/REX/ShutterstockVolodymyr Zelensky has refused to allow UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to visit Ukraine for a trip to Russia, a source in the presidential office told the BBC.
The BBC understands that Guterres originally wanted to visit Kiev after attending the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia this week.
“The president has not confirmed his visit,” the source told the BBC. “After Kazan, after he shook hands with the instigators of war and spent the United Nations Day on the territory of the aggressor, it will be a little strange to receive him here.”
Guterres’s visit to Russia – which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 – has caused dismay across Ukraine.
During his visit, Guterres called for a “just peace” in Ukraine and reiterated to Putin his position that Russia’s invasion of the country “violated the United Nations Charter and international law.”
“This is a wrong choice that will not advance the cause of peace. It will only damage the reputation of the United Nations,” Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement ahead of Guterres’ visit to Kazan.
The statement added: “The UN Secretary-General rejected Ukraine’s invitation to participate in the first global peace summit in Switzerland. However, he accepted an invitation from war criminal Putin to Kazan.”
EPA-EFE/REX/ShutterstockDuring the BRICS summit in Kazan, Guterres issued a statement saying: “We need peace in Ukraine. A just peace that is consistent with the United Nations Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions.”
Guterres’ office defended his participation in the summit, citing the BRICS’ role “in promoting global cooperation”.
The BRICS was formed in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, and was later joined by South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.
Many analysts say some BRICS heavyweights such as Russia and China have been seeking to challenge the G7, which consists of the world’s seven largest economies.
The current members of the G7 include Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
