Russia blocks UN statement on Ukraine as fighting escalates
Security Council would have criticised a pro-Moscow rebel leader and the recent attacks
Russia has blocked a UN Security Council statement that would have criticised a pro-Russian Ukrainian rebel leader and condemned a recent upsurge in violence that has claimed dozens of lives in eastern Ukraine, council diplomats said.
The latest failure of the council to weigh in on the continuing war came as pro-Russian rebels launched an offensive against the strategic port of Mariupol in eastern Ukraine, prompting warnings from the European Union and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
Fighting has escalated in eastern Ukraine in recent days, and Russian President Vladimir Putin has blamed Kiev. The rebels have ruled out participating in more peace talks. Western powers and Kiev blame Russia and the rebels for the fresh fighting.
Ban's office issued a statement saying he "strongly condemns today's rocket attack on the city of Mariupol, which reportedly killed dozens of civilians and left over [100] injured".
It also said Ban denounced yesterday's unilateral withdrawal from the ceasefire by rebel leadership, and particularly their provocative statements about claiming further territory. He said the separatists' actions violated a peace agreement negotiated in September in Belarus.
Britain proposed a Security Council statement that would have echoed Ban's condemnation and called for an investigation into the attacks on Mariupol, but Russia rejected it, diplomats said. Council statements need unanimous approval, which means all 15 members have the ability to strike them down.