EU Statement – UN Security Council: Ukraine

EU Statement - UN Security Council: Ukraine

20 April 2026, New York - Statement on behalf of the European Union and its Member States by H.E. Ambassador Hedda Samson, Deputy Head of the Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations, at the UN Security Council: Maintenance of peace and security of Ukraine

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President,

I thank the Bahraini Presidency for convening this meeting. Thank you to the briefers for their updates.

I have the honour to make this statement on behalf of the European Union and its Member States. The Candidate Countries North Macedonia, Montenegro*, Albania*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, and Bosnia and Herzegovina*, as well as Andorra and Monaco, align themselves with this statement.

We have now entered the fifth year of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. 1500 days of conflict, destruction and civilian losses.

Only last week a new wave of Russian missiles and drones targeted civilians in Kyiv, Dnipro, Cherkasy, Sloviansk, Chernihiv and Kharkiv. In Kharkiv, Russia targeted the Pechenihy Dam with six guided aerial bombs at a moment of peak seasonal water levels. If successful, the strike would have caused catastrophic downstream flooding, reminiscent of the blowing up of the Kakhovka Dam under Russian control in 2023. This Council must unequivocally condemn Russia for systematically and deliberately targeting Ukraine's civilian and energy infrastructure and bring diplomatic pressure to bear to make it stop.

Beyond all else, this war needs to stop and it needs to stop now. I reiterate the EU's strong support for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine based on the principles of the UN Charter and international law and underpinned by robust and credible security guarantees for Ukraine. The EU supports diplomatic efforts to bring the war to an end. They need to be stepped up without delay.

Russia must finally agree to a full, unconditional and immediate ceasefire and engage in meaningful negotiations towards a just and lasting peace. I call on all members of this Council to join us in urging Russia to do so. For peace to be just and lasting, respect for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity is the cornerstone. Borders must not be changed by force, the aggressor cannot be rewarded and Ukraine's long-term security and ability to defend itself must be guaranteed. We are prepared to contribute to robust and credible security guarantees for Ukraine, notably through the Coalition of the Willing and in cooperation with the United States.

The EU also urges all countries, including all members of this Council, to immediately cease any assistance to Russia in its war of aggression, whether direct or indirect, and notably through the provision of dual-use goods and components.

In the context of Iran's indiscriminate military strikes against countries in the region, the EU welcomes Ukraine's readiness to provide support and expertise in air defence and counter-drone systems to Gulf countries based on its ample experience in defending itself from the same Iranian-developed Shahad drones that Iran has been transferring to Russia.

I reiterate the EU's urgent call on Russia and Belarus to immediately ensure the safe and unconditional return to Ukraine of all unlawfully deported and transferred Ukrainian children and other civilians. I recall the decision of the GA last December to redouble efforts to return Ukrainian children. We welcome the recent visit of the SRSG for Children and Armed Conflict to Kyiv in this regard and look forward to hearing from the UN about its efforts.

I also reaffirm the EU's commitment to ensuring full accountability for war crimes and the other most serious crimes committed in connection with Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. In this context, I welcome recent step forwards and I call to continue to sustain efforts within the framework of the Council of Europe towards the operationalisation of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine and the establishment of the International Claims Commission for Ukraine. I also welcome the recent renewal of the mandate of the Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine by the Human Rights Council.

President,

The future of Ukraine and its citizens lies within the European Union. We will continue to provide, in coordination with like-minded partners and allies, comprehensive political, financial, economic, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support to Ukraine and its people in line with its inherent right to self-defence under article 51 of the UN Charter.

Thank you.

1. ^North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.