UN hopes for Russian troop withdrawal from Ukraine by September or sooner

UN General Assembly President Dennis Francis said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

The diplomat stated that the General Assembly, the largest and most democratic body of the United Nations, had clearly emphasized to Russia that it was violating the fundamental principles of the organization and that there was an expectation for this behavior to be corrected as soon as possible. The resolution, in fact, called for the immediate and complete withdrawal of all Russian troops from the territory of Ukraine.

According to him, "one state cannot violate the law most flagrantly and expect nothing to happen."

Francis reminded that Russia holds the presidency of the UN Security Council until July 31, 2024. In September, a new president of the UNGA will take office. He will have his own program of work. And whatever it is, Ukraine will be on the UN agenda, the diplomat assured.

Francis summarized that he could assert without uncertainty that the UN agenda would continue to emphasize the significance of the war in Ukraine. He mentioned that this issue was not expected to vanish and currently showed no signs of doing so. He expressed hope that the Russian authorities would opt to withdraw their troops from Ukraine by September of that year or sooner, but cautioned that based on current observations, there was no assurance this would occur. He noted that this issue would persist as a priority on the agenda of the UN General Assembly.

• On July 2, Dennis Francis arrived in Kyiv. It was the first visit of the President of the UN General Assembly in the last 30 years.