Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, Europe, Central Asia and the Americas, Asia and the Pacific Khaled Khiari
Remarks to the Security Council on Ukraine
New York, 22 June 2026
Madam President,
On 15 June, the Russian Federation launched yet another massive, deadly strike on Ukraine.
Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, and Mykolaiv regions of Ukraine were hit with dozens of missiles, and hundreds of drones.
In Kyiv, five people were reportedly killed, and 30 others, including children, injured.
Sites with immeasurable historic and cultural value for Ukraine - and beyond - were damaged.
The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, part of UNESCO World Heritage, was hit, causing significant damage to the exterior and interior of the 11th-century Dormition Cathedral.
This religious complex is one of Ukraine’s most significant landmarks. Its exceptional universal value reflects the spiritual and cultural development of the region.
Since February 2022, UNESCO has verified damage to more than 530 cultural sites across the country.
Madam President,
That same night, in Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv, five emergency workers were reportedly killed in a so-called double-tap attack.
The evening before, the Kharkiv Art Museum was struck by a drone. A one-month-old baby and four other people were reportedly injured in this strike.
Attacks have continued daily. Just yesterday evening, a missile strike reportedly killed one person and injured three others in Odesa.
On 19 June, in the port of Odesa, foreign civilian vessels were hit by drones, reportedly killing one crew member and injuring two others.
Madam President,
These escalating aerial attacks have increased civilian death toll.
According to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), last month at least 274 civilians were killed and 1,763 injured in Ukraine. This is the highest monthly combined figure of killed and injured since April 2022.
In total, since the start of the Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, OHCHR has verified that at least 16,126 civilians, including 796 children, have been killed in Ukraine. 46,590 civilians, including 2,835 children, have been injured. Actual figures are likely higher.
Madam President,
We remain concerned about the impact of the war on civilians in territories of Ukraine under the temporary occupation of the Russian Federation, including in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.
We are also concerned about the growing impact of the war on civilians in the Russian Federation.
Just today, three people were reportedly injured in a missile strike on a manufacturing plant in the city of Voronezh.
On 18 June, 17 people, including children, were reportedly injured in a Ukrainian drone strike - the largest such strike targeting Moscow and surrounding areas since the start of the war. Drones reportedly hit a major oil processing facility, also causing damage to residential buildings and a large commercial centre. The attacks continued the following day.
On 17 June, a drone strike reportedly hit a bus carrying a Belarusian youth soccer team in the Bryansk region of the Russian Federation. According to Russian and Belarusian authorities, one pregnant woman was reportedly killed and seven people, five of them children, injured.
On 15 June, Russian officials reported that three people were killed and three others injured, including a one-year-old child, following a reported Ukrainian drone attack in Tula region.
According to Russian authorities, in the first five months of this year, 184 civilians were killed and 1,175 injured in several regions of the Russian Federation.
Madam President,
International humanitarian law is clear. Attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, including cultural sites, are strictly prohibited. They must stop now, wherever they occur.
We reiterate our firm condemnation of all such attacks.
Madam President,
The increased military activity reported near the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) in recent weeks remains a grave concern. The IAEA maintains its presence at all of Ukraine’s nuclear sites, including ZNPP, to help ensure nuclear safety and security.
We reiterate the imperative for all parties to act responsibly and exercise maximum restraint by immediately ceasing military activities near all nuclear facilities, including the ZNPP.
Madam President,
Later this week, the annual Ukraine Recovery Conference will take place in Gdańsk, Poland, seeking toadvance international efforts in support of Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction.
The United Nations will continue to support the people of Ukraine in their long road to recovery. We stress the importance of the participation of women in recovery efforts and in decision-making impacting the future of their country.
At the same time, recovery will only be sustainable if it is anchored in a broader vision for peace.
Madam President,
If the current dangerous cycle of escalation continues, we will undoubtedly witness further devastation in Ukraine, as well as increasingly in the Russian Federation.
Worsening instability across the region will only further complicate an already perilous path to peace.
Concerted diplomatic efforts towards a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire must resume now.
We continue to call for immediate de-escalation to enable meaningful, inclusive negotiations for a just, lasting and comprehensive peace in Ukraine, in line with the UN Charter, international law, and relevant UN resolutions.
The United Nations supports all efforts to that end.
