Kazan
\nVolodymyr Zelensky has rejected a visit to Ukraine by UN Secretary General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres over his trip to Russia, a source in the presidential office has told the BBC.
\nAfter attending a Brics summit in the Russian city of Kazan this week, Guterres had wanted to visit Kyiv, the BBC understands.
\n\u201cThe president did not confirm his visit,\u201d the source told the BBC. \u201cAfter Kazan and after he shook hands with the war\u2019s instigator and spent UN Day on the territory of the aggressor country, it would be somehow strange to host him here.\u201d
\nGuterres\u2019 visit to Russia – who launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 – was met with dismay across Ukraine.
\nDuring his visit, Guterres called for a \u201cjust peace\u201d in Ukraine and reiterated his position to Putin that Russia\u2019s invasion of the country was in \u201cviolation of the United Nations Charter and international law\u201d.
\nIn a statement ahead of Guterres\u2019 visit to Kazan, the Ukrainian foreign ministry said: \u201cThis is a wrong choice that does not advance the cause of peace. It only damages the UN\u2019s reputation.\u201d
\n\u201cThe UN secretary general declined Ukraine\u2019s invitation to the first Global Peace Summit in Switzerland. He did, however, accept the invitation to Kazan from war criminal Putin,\u201d the statement added.
\nHeld at Ukraine\u2019s initiative, the June summit in Switzerland was attended by more than 90 nations. It condemned Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, offering a peace proposal on how to end the war.
\nMoscow – who was not invited – dismissed the gathering as meaningless.
\nIn 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over alleged war crimes in Ukraine.
\nRussia does not recognise the ICC, which co-operates closely with the UN.
\nDuring the Brics summit in Kazan, Guterres issued a statement that said: \u201cWe need peace in Ukraine. A just peace in line with the UN Charter, international law and General Assembly resolutions.\u201d
\nGuterres\u2019 office justified his participation in the summit, referring to Brics\u2019 role \u201cin boosting global co-operation\u201d.
\nSet up in 2006 by Brazil, Russia, India and China, Brics was later joined by South Africa, Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.
\nA number of analysts say that some Brics heavyweights, like Russia and China, have been seeking to challenge the G7 group of the world\u2019s seven largest economies.
\nThe current G7 members are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Kazan Volodymyr Zelensky has rejected a visit to Ukraine by UN Secretary General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres over his trip to Russia, a source in the presidential office has told the BBC. After attending a Brics summit in the Russian city of Kazan this week, Guterres had wanted to visit Kyiv, the BBC understands. \u201cThe president did […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":439707,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-439670","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n