UN chief Antonio Guterres has repeated calls for ceasefires and the establishment of safe humanitarian corridors for civilians in Ukraine.
Speaking at a press conference after a meeting with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Mr Guterres said the UN stood ready to mobilise all of its resources to help civilians in besieged Mariupol.
He said: “It is my deep conviction that the sooner we end the war, the better, for the people of Ukraine, of the Russian Federation and those far beyond.
“The UN has repeatedly called for a ceasefire to protect civilians and facilitate political dialogues to reach a solution. So far that has not been possible.
“Today across the Donbas a violent battle is underway with tremendous death and destruction.
“Many civilians are being killed and hundreds of thousands of people are in life threatening conditions trapped by the conflict.
“I’m concerned about the repeated reports about the violations of international humanitarian law and war crimes and they require independent investigation for effective accountability.
“And we urgently need humanitarian corridors that are truly safe and effective and are respected by all to evacuate civilians and deliver much needed assistance.”
He proposed “the establishment of a humanitarian contact group” between the UN, Russia and Ukraine to look for safe corridors, with local ceasefires.
Mr Guterres said the UN was ready to use all of its resources to save civilians trapped in the strategic port city of Mariupol, “to enable safe evacuation for those civilians who want to leave … in any direction they choose”.
Speaking to reporters, Mr Lavrov said it was too early to talk about mediation in talks between Russia and Ukraine, but claimed that Moscow is committed to a diplomatic solution with Kyiv.
He said the conflict in Ukraine was a “dangerous wake-up call” for the UN and repeated Mr Putin’s regime’s claims that the invasion is a “special military operation”.
Mr Guterres has earlier been criticised by Ukraine for not visiting Kyiv first, with top officials saying he had no mandate to speak to Russia on behalf of the country.
He is expected to visit Kyiv on Thursday.
On Saturday, Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, told reporters there was “no justice and no logic in this order” of the trip.
“The war is in Ukraine, there are no bodies in the streets of Moscow. It would be logical to go first to Ukraine, to see the people there, the consequences of the occupation,” Mr Zelensky said.
