Nearly five years into the war, the Russian Federation and Ukraine face a stark choice: a wider conflict or a deliberate turn towards peace, the United Nations political affairs chief told the Security Council today, urging renewed diplomatic efforts towards an immediate, full and unconditional ceasefire.
“We are entering a dangerous new phase in the war in Ukraine,” warned Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs. “Every day, the attacks are intensifying, civilian casualties are mounting, and the risk of regional spillover is growing,” she said, adding that “the consequences are being felt far beyond the battlefield”. In the first eight months of 2026, more civilians were killed or injured in Ukraine than during the entirety of 2025.
She further observed that, over the weekend, Moscow and other parts of the Russian Federation came under the largest wave of drone attacks to date. “These attacks – in Ukraine and in the Russian Federation – are unacceptable and must stop immediately,” she asserted.
Warning against regional spillover, she stressed that cross-border drone incursions affecting or approaching the airspace of neighbouring States have become increasingly frequent. In recent weeks, alarming incidents involving drones have been reported in Ukraine’s border areas with the Republic of Moldova and Poland, as well as in Lithuania and Romania. Concurrently, reported military activity in and around Ukraine’s nuclear sites, as well as nuclear facilities in the Russian Federation, also remains a grave concern.
“As another wartime winter approaches, the intensifying attacks affecting Ukraine’s already strained energy infrastructure are particularly concerning,” she observed, noting that the cumulative impact of these strikes “could plunge millions of people into darkness and cold in the coming months”.
No Pausing Operation, Moscow Says, Citing Rights of Russian Speakers
Presenting Moscow’s position on prospects for ending the conflict, Sergey V. Lavrov, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, recalled recent meetings with United States envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who indicated Washington, D.C.’s, willingness to achieve a settlement in Ukraine. Moscow is prepared to negotiate a lasting and just peace, he said, adding that Russian Federation President Vladimir V. Putin laid out the issues to be resolved in June 2024. However, “we are not going to have a pause in our special military operation”, he asserted. “Europe – whatever it thinks – just wants to get a pause and use it to pump the Kyiv regime with weapons,” he said, citing such conduct as “clear and blatant use of terrorist methods”.
He underscored that the aim of the special military operation is to ensure Moscow’s security interests and fully take into consideration the rights of Russians and the Russian-speaking population, not only in Crimea, Donbas and Novorossiya, but also throughout Ukraine.
‘This War Must Stop. Ukraine Wants to End It Now.’
Offering a sharply contrasting perspective, Andrii Sybiha, Ukraine’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, said: “This war must stop. Ukraine wants to end it now. Not later.” He added that his country is “ready to stop it now. Right here.” Recalling that the Council was built “on the ashes of the most devastating war in human history”, he observed that, today, the world stands close to another global catastrophe. “This is everyone’s war because its consequences reach everywhere,” he said. Ukraine has identified around 3,000 mercenaries from 37 African countries in the Russian Federation army, he said, also pointing to Moscow’s recruitment efforts abroad.
Noting that the Russian Federation is already waging war on Europe, he stressed that Moscow’s war is no longer “hybrid”. He observed that in Oleshky town, on the left bank of the Dnipro, people are “crying for help” due to the Russian Federation’s “engineered blockade”, urging Member States to demand that Moscow open humanitarian corridors. “Every country that refuses to support Russia’s war can contribute to peace,” he stressed, urging States to “act now”. “We must stop this war now. Before Putin enters your home. He is already at the entrance,” he emphasized.
Focusing on efforts to bring the parties back to negotiations, the United States’ representative echoed President Donald J. Trump: “The killing has to stop.” “It is not about winning; all sides are losing; the world is losing,” he stressed, pointing to 25,000 casualties per month.
And while “we can fill these rooms with speeches about peace”, the President is doing everything he can to broker that peace, he said, reiterating his country’s commitment to facilitating an end to the war. “Don’t widen the war, recognize that there is no military solution […] and return to the negotiating table,” he asserted, adding that Washington, D.C., is prepared to mediate trilateral talks and use every diplomatic opening to bring the parties together.
Similarly emphasizing dialogue, China’s delegate said: “The parties concerned and the broader international community should join hands to strive for the dawn of peace.” Accordingly, he welcomed the series of recent engagements and interactions between key stakeholders. He added: “The negotiating table is the starting point for peace,” emphasizing that, if dialogue continues, it will be possible to find a solution.
Russian Federation ‘Annihilated, Ruined, Isolated’ by War
European speakers, meanwhile, focused on Moscow’s responsibility for the war, the security implications for the continent and the need to support Ukraine. “Almost five years ago, Vladimir Putin threw his own country and his own citizens behind a pursuit of a paranoia-driven ambition of a brutal and illegal aggression against Ukraine,” stated Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France. Calling the Russian Federation “annihilated, ruined, isolated” by the war, he stressed that “the stubbornness of only one man has already doomed 500,000 Russians to death”.
Echoing concerns about the conflict’s widening security implications, António Costa, President of the European Council, said: “It is unacceptable that Moscow has repeatedly threatened the security of European Union member States over the past 12 months.” Citing it as “a dangerous escalation”, he underscored that the bloc “supports all efforts to end the war”.
Also urging a ceasefire, Edgars Rinkēvičs, President of Latvia, stressed: “The task of this Council is to stop this war.” He welcomed the United States engagement, including the first visit of the Special Envoys to Kyiv, and called on every country to support Ukraine’s air defence and safeguard its energy system.
‘Europe Will Not Be Intimidated’
Turning to the impact of the conflict across Europe, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Denmark, reiterated that the consequences of Moscow’s aggression have impacted Europe, as several neighbouring countries have experienced airspace violations, drones and missile incidents. Yet, “Europe is not, and will not be intimidated,” he stated. He stressed that a peaceful settlement concerning Ukraine cannot be decided without its participation, and that Europe must be meaningfully involved.
For his part, Ed Miliband, Member of Parliament and Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom, underscored that the United Kingdom and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) do not seek conflict with Moscow. “NATO is, and always will be, a defensive alliance,” he emphasized. He stressed that London will continue to back Kyiv, while increasing pressure on the Russian Federation and supporting diplomacy. Pointing to Ukraine’s national resolve, he added: “I say to the Russian representative – it is time ministers told Putin the truth. The world knows that Russia is failing in this war. […] And he knows it, too.”
Speakers Warn of Growing Risk of War Spreading beyond Ukraine
Several States neighbouring the conflict focused more directly on the danger of its further expansion. Radosław Sikorski, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Poland, stated: “After four years of senseless colonial war, Vladimir Putin has achieved nothing,” he added. Stating that the Russian Federation’s President might try to provoke a NATO country and spread the war further, he addressed that country’s delegation, saying: “Don’t endanger Europe and the world any further. Stop destroying Russia’s future.”
Similarly highlighting regional spillover, Romania’s President, Nicuşor-Daniel Dan, recalled recent drone incidents over his country’s territory, noting that Russian Federation drones are breaching national airspace with increasing frequency and have now extended into the maritime domain. As developments in the Black Sea disrupt global supply chains and increase maritime insecurity, he said, infringements of freedom of navigation have become recurrent, highlighting intensified strikes on Ukrainian ports and commercial shipping on the Danube and in the Black Sea. Calling for the restoration of freedom of navigation, he highlighted the recently established European Union Maritime Security Hub and a regional partnership with Bulgaria and Türkiye on demining.
Finland Calls Ukraine War a ‘Stalemate’, Sees ‘No Military Solution’
Other speakers emphasized the mounting costs of a war they said cannot ultimately be resolved militarily. “The war is very much a stalemate: this year, Russia acquired roughly 900 square kilometres, but Ukraine got 800 square kilometres back,” pointed out Alexander Stubb, President of Finland, adding that “the line of contact is basically not moving”. “It is a waste of life,” he stressed, adding: “Someone has to tell the aggressor this will not have a military solution.” In an ideal world, there would be an unconditional – or even a conditional – ceasefire, he added.
Along similar lines, Peter Pellegrini, President of Slovakia, said: “Since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, we have supported the Ukrainian people as any responsible neighbour would do,” emphasizing that “every country has the right to govern itself, borders must never be changed by force and no nation is above the law”. He added: “Even a partial ceasefire could lead to a broader agreement.”
Turning to accountability, Rob Jetten, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, also speaking on behalf of Belgium and Luxembourg, declared: “Borders cannot be changed by force and aggression cannot be rewarded.” He underscored the need for accountability, highlighting “substantial steps” his country has taken since 2025, including establishing the legal foundations for the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine and a Claims Commission. “Aggression does not pay and never will,” he underlined.
