Thank you, President.
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the five Nordic countries, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden – and my own country, Denmark.
We thank Assistant Secretary General Jenča for the briefing.
On 24 August, we marked the 33rd anniversary of Ukraine’s independence — a day dedicated to celebrate Ukraine's unique history, culture, and identity, but also the right to freely choose its own future and aspirations. The Nordic countries remain unwavering in our support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. Just 48 hours after the Ukrainian independence day, Russia launched a major missile attack on the regions of Kyiv, Odessa, Vinnytsia, Zaporizhzhia, Kremenchuk, Dnipro, Khmelnytskyi, Kropyvnytskyi, Kryvyi Rih, Lviv, Rivne, and Ivano-Frankivsk targeting civilians and critical infrastructure that once again shows Russia’s blatant disregard for international law. We strongly condemn such heinous attacks. These massive air strikes are among the worst since the onset of Russia’s illegal, unprovoked and unjustified war of aggression.
President,
Russia’s goal remains to subjugate Ukraine. In the areas it has temporarily occupied, Russia has brought death, terror and destruction. No one wants peace more than Ukraine, whose people continue to suffer the consequences of Russia’s aggression. But it cannot be peace at any cost.
At the Peace Summit in June in Switzerland, more than 100 countries and international organizations from across the globe, came together to reaffirm their support for a peaceful resolution based on international law, including the UN Charter. The Summit reconfirmed widespread international support for the peace process and conveyed strong political will to solve concrete challenges, on food and nuclear security, persons deprived of their liberty, and deported persons. The Summit’s joint communiqué echoes a common message conveyed in the countless statements made in the Council and the seven resolutions passed by the UN General Assembly: We all have a shared responsibility to work towards promoting a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine based on the UN Charter, and in line with Ukraine’s Peace Formula.
President,
Last month the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution on Safety and Security of Nuclear Facilities of Ukraine, including the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The Nordic countries welcome the continued engagement by the UN community in working towards peace in Ukraine as demonstrated by the adoption of a resolution on this important matter. Despite this, Russia’s systematic and detrimental attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure continue unabated. Russia has again chosen to “weaponize” supplies of energy and critical energy deliveries.
The Nordic countries are firmly engaged in Ukraine’s Peace Formula point three on energy security, and we are committed to support Ukraine in the rebuilding of its energy infrastructure. We reiterate that attacks targeting civilians and civilian objects are strictly prohibited under international humanitarian law and must stop immediately.
With 14.6 million people already in need of humanitarian assistance in Ukraine, we are confronted with a harsh reality: Unless Russia immediately halts its attacks and the energy infrastructure is rebuilt quickly, there will be grave consequences for the civilian population during the fast-approaching winter.
In closing, the Nordics once again reaffirm our unwavering support to the founding principles of the UN, including the inviolability of sovereignty and territorial integrity of all States. We call on Russia to cease all hostilities and withdraw troops from the entire territory of Ukraine, within its internationally recognized borders. We will stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes.
Thank you, Mr. President.