U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned the United Nations Security Council on Friday (February 24) that it should not be fooled by calls for a temporary or unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, saying a “just and durable” peace cannot allow Russia to rest and rearm.
The council met to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine, which was launched on Feb. 24 last year as the 15-member body met in New York over Western concerns that Moscow was planning such a move.
Blinken’s warning to the council came just hours after China called for a comprehensive ceasefire as part of a 12-point plan on the war that was largely a reiteration of its approach since Russia launched what it calls a “special military operation.”
