UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman concluded a three-day visit to Ukraine today, 7 December 2013. While in Kyiv, Under-Secretary-General Feltman represented UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at the 20th Ministerial Meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. On behalf of the Secretary-General, he congratulated Ukraine on its successful Chairmanship of the OSCE in 2013.

 

The Under-Secretary-General also had the occasion to meet with representatives of Ukraine's government and Parliament, political parties, and civil society organizations. In those discussions, he expressed the UN's solid commitment to the people of Ukraine, an important member state of the organization.

 

Under-Secretary-General Feltman conveyed his grave concern regarding the current situation and underscored the message of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in rejecting violence and calling for absolute restraint. He urged Ukraine's political and civil society leaders to engage immediately in dialogue to identify among themselves the means to address Ukraine's political and economic issues. In that regard, he recommended that they seek peaceful ways on an urgent basis to de-escalate the current tensions.