Ukraine war: ‘A just peace’ needed to end conflict, UN chief tells Putin

The UN secretary general has told Vladimir Putin that “a just peace” is needed to end the Ukraine war.

Appearing alongside Mr Putin at a BRICS summit in the Russian city of Kazan, Antonio Guterres called on the Russian leader to agree a peace deal “in line with the UN Charter, international law and UN General Assembly resolutions”.

It comes after President Xi Jinping claimed on Wednesday that China and fellow BRICS member Brazil both have peace plans for the war in Ukraine.

He told Mr Putin and other leaders at the three-day summit that they intend to rally further international support in the hope of bringing fighting there to an end.

Mr Xi said: “We must uphold the three key principles: no expansion of the battlefields, no escalation of hostilities, and no fanning flames and strive for swift de-escalation of the situation.”

The BRIC coalition formed in 2009, bringing together Brazil, Russia, India, and China. South Africa joined the following year, changing the name to BRICS.

It was largely disregarded at first – but it has since grown in both membership and influence with Russia’s war in Ukraine and Iran’s involvement in the wars in Gaza, Israel, and Lebanon dominating global geopolitics.

Just weeks before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Mr Putin and Mr Xi signed a “no limits” partnership between their two countries.

Beijing, however, has kept largely quiet on the Ukraine war and not tried to use its influence on Moscow to bring it to an end as many had hoped. This week’s claims of a peace plan could reignite those hopes.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said his country “supports dialogue and diplomacy, not war”.

In a joint declaration, summit participants voiced concern about “the disruptive effect of unlawful unilateral coercive measures, including illegal sanctions”.

Mr Putin’s priority for the meeting was discussions of an alternative global payment system that could be used between members – after Russia was cut off from SWIFT at the outbreak of its invasion.

As such, the attendees’ statement talked of a “faster, low-cost, more efficient, transparent, safe and inclusive cross-border payment instruments built upon the principle of minimising trade barriers and non-discriminatory access.”

Appearing alongside BRICS members on Thursday, UN chief Mr Guterres also called for peace in the conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon, and Sudan.

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