Statement by H.E. Carolyn Rodrigues Birkett, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the UN, at Security Council Briefing on 'Maintenance of Peace and Security of Ukraine'

Thank you, Madam President,

I thank ASG Jenča and OCHA Director Ms. Wosornu for the updates provided and welcome the participation of the Representatives of Ukraine, Lithuania, Denmark, Poland, and the European Union in today’s meeting.

Guyana continues to register its grave concern about the immeasurable human suffering in Ukraine as a result of this ongoing war.  

A war that should never have been waged in the first place and which has shattered the lives of millions.  

The Rapid Needs Assessment report published by the World Bank, UN, European Commission, and the Ukrainian government estimates that it will take at least 10 years to rebuild Ukraine at the cost of four hundred and eighty-six billion US dollars (USD 486 B).  

This is the dollar amount. The reality is that the fighting and hostilities have destroyed millions of lives. Many of which may never be fully rebuilt and to which a cost cannot be attached.  

Since the start of the war, OHCHR has verified over 10,000 civilian deaths, with more than 20,000 civilians sustaining injuries. More than 6 million Ukrainians have been forced to live as refugees across Europe while 3.6 million people are internally displaced.  

As alarming as these figures are, they fail to capture the full impact of this war.

Equally devastating, is the fact that many of these attacks are being committed indiscriminately in populated areas, in clear violation of international humanitarian law.

These attacks are damaging schools, medical facilities, houses, and other critical civilian infrastructure, with far-reaching consequences.  

Under international humanitarian law, these critical infrastructure are considered civilian objects and are meant to be protected from attacks during an armed conflict. Yet, despite the principles of international law, they continue to be targeted.   

The latest report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine paints a very grim picture of the severe impact of this war, documenting many instances of violations. These include cases of torture, rape, and other sexual violence, and transfers of children.  

Guyana calls for an immediate end to these illegal actions and demands that the parties respect humanitarian principles, and adhere to international humanitarian law, and international human rights law, by ending and preventing all grave violations against children and ensuring their safe return.

We maintain that prolonging this war poses increasingly grave risks and consequences for all concerned and for international peace and security.  

We call for an immediate end to the hostilities and the complete withdrawal of Russian military forces from the internationally recognized territory of Ukraine.  

We also call for the parties to cease all human rights violations and to take all possible measures to prevent attacks against children and sexual and gender-based violence against civilians and prisoners of war. We further call for unhindered access to be granted to humanitarian workers in the occupied territories and urge the international community to scale up humanitarian support to Ukraine.

In closing, we once again encourage the parties to commit to a serious political and diplomatic process toward ending the conflict, and the continued engagement of the international community to this end. We welcome the peace initiatives announced by some UN Member States and pledge our support.

I thank you.