International Appeal: United Nations Secretary-General Urges Immediate and Unconditional Cessation of Hostilities in Ukraine
As of late June 2025 and early July 2025, the negotiations between Russia and Ukraine remain deadlocked, with no significant progress towards a ceasefire or peace agreement. The ongoing war between the two nations, which has been ongoing for over three years, has resulted in more casualties and significant damage to civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.
Russia's stance is that Moscow is willing to engage in a new round of direct peace talks, but President Vladimir Putin emphasizes that the key provisions of any peace deal must be agreed upon before a summit meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky can occur. Putin continues to reject an immediate ceasefire and demands that Ukraine cede territory and end Western military support, terms that Ukraine has found unacceptable. He also questions Zelensky's legitimacy, undermining prospects for dialogue.
Ukraine, on the other hand, insists that a meaningful next step would be a direct meeting between Zelensky and Putin. Kyiv rejects Russia's territorial demands and insists on continuing Western support. Ukraine has been leveraging new defensive tactics, including drone countermeasures, to resist Russian advances. Ukrainian officials view the current proposals from Russia as contradictory to their own and seek a resolution that respects their sovereignty.
Two rounds of peace talks held in Istanbul earlier in 2025 resulted mainly in prisoner exchanges but no progress on ceasefire or peace terms. Both sides exchanged written proposals, which Putin described as "absolutely contradictory." Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov accused Kyiv and the U.S. of slowing progress, citing Ukraine's position, U.S. mediation effectiveness, and the state of the battlefield as key factors. Despite ongoing contact and prisoner swaps, no date has been set for the next negotiation round, and the war continues with ongoing drone and missile attacks.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has pledged support to Ukraine for a possible reconstruction effort, and has also called for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine. The Russian-appointed officials in Luhansk claim to have fully captured the eastern Ukrainian region, but this has not been confirmed by Kiev or the Russian Defense Ministry.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (CDU) announced that Germany and Ukraine would boost their cooperation in the arms sector during his visit to Kyiv. The war in Ukraine has taken a heavy toll on the civilian population, with a woman killed and two others, including a minor, injured in a rocket attack in the Russian-occupied eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk.
As the conflict continues, there is growing international concern about the humanitarian situation in Ukraine and the potential for a wider conflict in the region. The international community continues to call for a peaceful resolution to the conflict and an end to the suffering of the Ukrainian people.
- "The ongoing war-and-conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, deeply rooted in politics, have sparked general-news interest regarding the humanitarian crisis and potential for wider conflicts in the region."
- "Despite calls for peace from UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Russia's territorial demands and President Vladimir Putin's rejection of an immediate ceasefire continue to obstruct negotiations, impeding a peace agreement and further adding to the general-news discourse on the war-and-conflicts."
