Ms. Joyce Msuya, ASG for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, on behalf of Mr. Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Briefing to the Security Council, 7 June 2024

As delivered

Thank you, Mr. President.

Since we last briefed the Council three weeks ago, the civilian toll of attacks on Ukraine has continued to mount.

Few parts of the country are spared from these hostilities, particularly in the east, northeast and south. But an escalation in fighting in the Kharkiv region since 10 May has had the heaviest impact.

The Office for the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR) reports that at least 174 civilians were killed and 690 were injured in May, the highest number of civilian casualties in a single month since June 2023. More than half of these casualties can be attributed to the fighting in Kharkiv.

Shopping centres, homes, educational establishments, shops, office buildings, parks and public transport have all been struck in recent weeks.

At least 18,100 people in the Kharkiv Region have been newly displaced, according to estimates by the International Organization for Migration.

With support from around 50 humanitarian organizations, more than 12,000 people are receiving assistance at a transit centre in Kharkiv City. This includes food and water, clothes, bedding, household items, cash, psychosocial support and legal assistance.

Civilians who remain in border and frontline areas in Kharkiv face dire conditions. Many are cut off from access to food, medical care, electricity and gas.

Elderly people are disproportionately affected, because they are often unable or reluctant to leave their homes. In northern Kharkiv – where the fighting is heaviest – more than half of those killed or injured have been over the age of 60.

In total, OHCHR has now verified the killing of at least 11,000 civilians and the injury of more than 21,000 others across Ukraine since 24 February 2022. The actual toll is likely much higher.

Mr. President,

It is one year since the Kakhovka Dam disaster, one of the most significant incidents affecting civilian infrastructure since the start of the full-scale invasion.

Destruction of the dam unleashed monumental flooding, leaving large portions of the surrounding area under water. It destroyed homes, displaced families, ruined livelihoods, and disrupted water supply for millions of people.

It showed just how extensive and long-lasting the humanitarian impacts of a single incident affecting critical infrastructure can be.

That is why it is deeply concerning that systematic attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure – a feature of this war since February 2022 – continue.

Since 22 March 2024, the UN and its partners have identified six waves of such attacks across 15 regions, impacting health care and other social, payment and transport services, and disrupting electricity, gas, water supplies for millions of households. According to the United Nations Development Programme’s preliminary estimations based on available official data, the energy system in Ukraine is now down over 60 per cent of its pre-war generation capacity.

This, of course, has severe consequences for the humanitarian situation in Ukraine.

We note that strikes inside the Russian Federation in recent months, including in the Belgorod region, have also resulted in civilian casualties and damage to residential homes and other civilian infrastructure.

Mr. President,

We are also deeply concerned about the impact of attacks on Ukraine’s transportation and port infrastructure on global food security.

In recent weeks, there have been worrying indications of renewed upwards pressure on global grain prices, linked to this damage to infrastructure in Ukraine, among other factors.

We reiterate that safe navigation throughout the Black Sea and the protection of ports and related civilian infrastructure must be assured, so that food exports can reach global markets predictably and efficiently.

Mr. President,

As we commemorated International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression on 4 June, let me also highlight the particular impact of this conflict on children.

The physical, psychological and emotional harm on Ukrainian boys and girls has been immense.

More than 600 Ukrainian children have now been killed and 1,425 have been injured since the escalation of the armed conflict.

Children in frontline communities have spent between 3,000 and 5,000 hours in bomb shelters – the equivalent of four to seven months – causing immense stress and upheaval in their lives.

Many have had their educations disrupted, further jeopardizing their futures.

As with other vulnerable groups, children, particularly girls, have faced increased exposure to gender-based violence, domestic violence, and trafficking for sexual exploitation. Unavailable or overwhelmed protection services means access to support is extremely limited.

And one million children are among the close to four million people now internally displaced. Children also constitute a significant portion of the 6.5 million Ukrainian refugees recorded globally.

Mr. President,

The scale of humanitarian needs in Ukraine remains vast.

More than 14.6 million people – about 40 per cent of the population – require some form of humanitarian assistance. Over half of them are women and girls.

We are incredibly grateful to the donors who have so far provided $856 million in humanitarian funding – or 27 per cent of the $3.1 billion required under the 2024 Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan.

This funding has enabled nearly 500 humanitarian organizations – around 70 per cent of them national organizations, including local women-led organizations – to provide assistance to more than 4 million people in the first four months of this year.

This is despite the many challenges.

Key among these challenges – as we have said repeatedly – remains the lack of humanitarian access to around 1.5 million civilians in areas of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia currently under the occupation of the Russian Federation. We must have rapid and unimpeded humanitarian access to all civilians in need in accordance with the requirements of international humanitarian law.

And as the conflict continues to escalate, and we look to kickstart preparations for another winter dominated by war, full funding of the humanitarian response plan is urgently needed to sustain operations.

I am compelled, once again, to recall that all parties must respect international humanitarian law, including by facilitating humanitarian relief for civilians in need and taking constant care to spare all civilians as well as civilian objects, including homes, schools, hospitals and other essential infrastructure. These obligations bind all parties equally, without depending on reciprocity, wherever military operations are carried out – whether in Ukraine or the Russian Federation. I urge all States to exert their influence to ensure that the parties respect international humanitarian law.

Mr. President,

Well into the third year since the escalation of this war, it continues to rip apart civilian lives, homes and futures.

Millions of people are facing another year, and potentially another winter, of suffering and deprivation. Many, particularly those in frontline communities, continue to rely on humanitarian aid to meet their most basic needs.

The UN and its partners remain committed to supporting all those whose lives have been torn apart by this war.

But the longer the violence and destruction continue, the greater the suffering will become, and the bigger the task to rebuild shattered lives and communities. The long-term impact of this war will already be felt for many generations.

We welcome the Ukraine Recovery Conference, being held on 11-12 June in Berlin. This will be a key opportunity for donors, key partners and the UN to advance the Government’s recovery priorities and leverage financing for critical development in affected parts of the country.

And we continue to urge the Security Council and all Member States to do everything within their power to ensure respect for the rules of war, pursue peace, and bring the suffering of the Ukrainian people to an end.

Thank you, Mr. President.