00:00Sensible forces in Ukraine, Russia, the new U.S. administration
00:28and the countries of the global south first are taking serious steps to ensure that military
00:35hostilities in Ukraine end and never resume.
00:40But a simple ceasefire is not enough to achieve this.
00:43We already once stood at this very crossroads in the context of the Minsk agreements, which
00:49were systematically violated by the Western Ukraine.
00:52To achieve sustainable and lasting settlement of the Ukrainian crisis, we need to address
00:56its root causes.
00:58This is why Russia proposed resuming direct Russo-Ukrainian talks in Istanbul, which was
01:03suspended by Kyiv in April of 2022 at the behest of Boris Johnson and other Western leaders.
01:12What we're proposing is a second round of talks in Istanbul this coming Monday on the 2nd
01:16of June, where we can exchange memoranda about both parties' approaches to the negotiations
01:22process.
01:23Yet there's a whole host of forces who aren't interested in this scenario, and this for various
01:29reasons.
01:30The Russian Federation called today's meeting to advance the claim that European countries,
01:35by providing assistance to Ukraine, are undermining efforts to restore peace.
01:49That is not the case.
01:50Ukraine, as a sovereign country, has the right to defend itself from aggression.
01:54Ukraine's fellow UN member states have a right to provide Ukraine with the means to do so.
01:59Moreover, every member of this Council understands Ukraine is not the obstacle to a cease-fire that
02:04could lead to peace.
02:05Ukraine has repeatedly affirmed it is ready to accept an immediate, unconditional, and comprehensive
02:09cease-fire.
02:10It is Russia that has rejected this call.
02:13We share a different project, as a sovereign country, as the state of Ukraine being a sovereign
02:18country, and as a sovereign country.
02:18The Ukrainian Federation has the right to defend itself from aggression.
02:20Ukraine's fellow UN member states have a right to provide Ukraine with the means to
02:21do so.
02:22Moreover, every member of this Council understands Ukraine is not the obstacle to a cease-fire that could
02:24lead to peace.
02:25Ukraine has repeatedly affirmed it is ready to accept an immediate, unconditional and comprehensive cease-fire.
02:33rejected this call we share the concern expressed by other members of this council
02:38that Russia could be uninterested in peace and instead bent on achieving a
02:42military victory so today the United States calls on those countries
02:47supporting Russia's war industrial base to work towards peace instead of fueling
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