The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has criticized United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for accepting an invitation from Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend the BRICS summit while declining to participate in a “Peace Summit” focused on the Ukraine conflict.
In a post on social media platform X, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated, “The UN Secretary-General declined our invitation to attend the first Global Peace Summit in Switzerland.”
They further expressed, “However, he accepted an invitation from war criminal Putin to attend the summit in Kazan. This is a misguided choice that will not advance the cause of peace and will only damage the reputation of the United Nations.”
Tomorrow, Putin will host the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, which aims to showcase the influence of non-Western countries. Notable attendees include Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Earlier this month, a spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry revealed that Guterres had informed Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the UN General Assembly last month that he intended to travel to Kazan for the summit.
When asked about Guterres’ attendance at the Kazan summit, UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq responded, “Announcements regarding his future schedule will be made later.”
The Peace Summit, held in June at a resort in the Swiss mountains, gathered representatives from over 90 countries to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and seek ways to end the conflict. Russia was not invited to this summit and dismissed it as meaningless.
