UN General Assembly President condemns Russia’s ‘full‑scale aggression,’ urges repatriation of deported Ukrainian children

The President of the General Assembly (speaker identified only as S1 in the transcript) addressed member states on the eve of the anniversary of Russia’s invasion, condemning what he called “the launch of the Russian Federation’s full‑scale aggression against Ukraine, plunging its sovereign neighbor and innocent civilians into terror and suffering.”

He framed the conflict as a series of ‘‘protracted, illegal, and flagrant violations of the UN Charter and of international law,’’ and warned delegates the war has reshaped geopolitics and impeded development in many countries. Citing the UN human rights monitoring mission in Ukraine, he said noncombatant casualties had risen, with “the number of civilian deaths and injuries in January, hiking 37% higher than in November 2023.”

The speaker also highlighted humanitarian harms inside Ukraine, saying thousands of children had been “torn from their families and forcibly deported to Russia,” and stating that those children “must be repatriated to Ukraine and reunited with their families at once.” He warned that schools and hospitals—elements of civilian infrastructure protected under international law—“lie in utter and calculated ruin.”

The speech raised environmental and safety concerns, noting chemical effluent from damaged facilities and heightened pollution and greenhouse‑gas emissions tied to the fighting. On nuclear safety, the speaker cautioned that “the militarization of the nuclear sites runs the real risk of a nuclear accident, an outcome that would undoubtedly spell a disaster of epic proportions.”

Pointing to legal and diplomatic avenues, the speaker referenced orders from the International Court of Justice in March calling for the Russian Federation to suspend military operations in Ukraine and said that, while the Security Council may be divided, the General Assembly has repeatedly condemned the aggression and called for the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of Russian forces to Ukraine’s internationally recognized borders. He urged support for a ‘‘comprehensive, just, and sustainable peace’’ and noted international consultations in Denmark, Saudi Arabia, Malta and Davos that build on General Assembly resolutions.

The address closed with an appeal to uphold the UN Charter and the rule of law, a call for solidarity with the people of Ukraine, and a request that member states redouble diplomatic efforts toward peace. The speaker concluded, “I thank you.”