PRESS RELEASE : President of Ukraine met with the UN Secretary-General in Lviv

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 18 August 2022.

In Lviv, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with Secretary-General of the United Nations António Guterres who is on a visit to our country.

The Head of State noted the key role of the UN and António Guterres personally in resolving the issue of unblocking Ukrainian ports for food exports. The parties agreed to continue active and comprehensive coordination of the implementation of the grain initiative.

“Ukraine is ready to continue to be a guarantor of global food security,” the President emphasized.

During the negotiations, possible directions for the further development of the initiative were outlined – its improvement and increase in the level of security of implementation. Increasing the number of ships that safely export Ukrainian food is a global need.

Special attention was paid to the issue of illegal and forced deportation of Ukrainian citizens to the Russian Federation and the protection of Ukrainians illegally detained in Russia. “I am asking you personally to help the UN representatives get permanent unhindered access to the deported Ukrainians,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

In this context, the President emphasized the importance of assistance from the UN in the liberation of Ukrainian servicemen and medics from Russian captivity. He also emphasized the need to observe the norms of the Geneva Conventions regarding prisoners of war, especially in the context of Russia’s detention of people in so-called filtration camps.

The Head of State separately informed the UN Secretary-General about the Russian nuclear blackmail at the Zaporizhzhia NPP, noting that this deliberate and cynical terror on the part of the aggressor could have catastrophic consequences for Ukraine and the whole world.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that the United Nations must ensure the security of this strategic object, its demilitarization and complete liberation from Russian troops. The President and the UN Secretary-General agreed upon the parameters of a possible IAEA mission to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. It must be carried out in a legal way through a territory free from occupiers.

António Guterres informed of the work on sending a UN fact-finding mission to Olenivka, where Russia committed a cynical terrorist attack against Ukrainian prisoners of war. Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed to include in the mandate of the mission the issue of compliance by the Russian side with the agreements reached in the context of the withdrawal of Ukrainian defenders from Azovstal, as well as to ensure the security and rights of all our prisoners of war.

The President of Ukraine informed António Guterres about the readiness of the Ukrainian state to take an active part in the next, 77th session of the UN General Assembly and to develop a number of important initiatives. It is primarily about working on legal mechanisms to hold Russia accountable, in particular the creation of a Special Tribunal for the crime of aggression committed by a terrorist state against Ukraine, as well as a new international mechanism for compensation for damages caused by Russian aggression.

The Secretary-General assured the President of Ukraine that the UN system will provide the necessary direct assistance to the citizens of Ukraine to overcome humanitarian challenges in the winter period.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy invited António Guterres to participate in the online summit of the international Crimea Platform on August 23.