Security Council
Maintenance of peace and security of Ukraine - Security Council, 9990th meeting
Warning that the Ukrainian people caught in the crossfire are “entering the fourth winter of the full-scale war”, a top UN official told the Security Council today that the Russian Federation’s large-scale escalation of attacks against civilians persist, killing children, setting grim casualty records and jeopardizing fragile diplomatic momentum.
Miroslav Jenča, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas at the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, said the Secretary-General on Thursday condemned Moscow’s deadly overnight missile and drone attacks. “Yesterday’s strikes are only the latest in the brutal escalation of country-wide aerial attacks,” he said. Ukrainian officials reported that, between 27 and 28 August alone, 598 drones and 31 missiles were launched, killing at least 23 people in Kyiv, including 4 children.
Mr. Jenča stressed the expanding scope of violence, saying these strikes targeted regions far from the front lines. “In July, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) recorded rising civilian casualties across 18 regions of Ukraine,” he told the 15-member Council, with July setting a record of 1,674 casualties — the highest since May 2022. Since the invasion began, 14,054 civilians, including 730 children, have been killed, while more than 36,000 have been injured, he said, also acknowledging the conflict’s spillover into the Russian Federation where there have been civilian casualties in Belgorod, Kursk and Bryansk.


