The United Nations on Monday reiterated its commitment to maintaining dialogue with Türkiye, Ukraine and Russia to ensure the freedom and safety of navigation in the Black Sea overshadowed by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
"While the worst impact of the war continues to be felt in the front line communities of eastern and southern Ukraine, death and destruction is also a daily occurrence away from the areas of active fighting," Miroslav Jenca, U.N. Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas, told a session of the U.N. Security Council. Emphasizing the war’s escalating toll on Ukraine’s civilian population, Jenca said, "In September, at least 208 Ukrainian civilians were killed and 1,220 injured, making it the month with the highest number of civilian casualties this year in Ukraine." Jenca cited the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, which reported that nearly 12,000 civilians, including 622 children, had been killed and over 25,000 more injured since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022. Highlighting Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea, he said that "The U.N., therefore, continues engagement with Ukraine, the Russian Federation and Türkiye, as well as other stakeholders, in support of freedom and safety of navigation in the Black Sea." He also drew attention to the torture faced by prisoners of war in both Ukraine and Russia, stating that 97% of Ukrainian prisoners and 50% of Russian prisoners reported being subjected to torture or ill-treatment during captivity.
"We urge the authorities of the Russian Federation, as well as of Ukraine, to end this practice and hold perpetrators accountable," he said. November will mark 1,000 days since the beginning of Russia's invasion, "a war" that Jenca described as causing "deep human suffering, threatening regional stability, and worsening global divisions."
Türkiye, in collaboration with Bulgaria and Romania, launched The Mine Countermeasures Naval Group in the Black Sea (MCM Black Sea) in January 2024. Its primary mission is to safeguard maritime traffic by neutralizing drifting sea mines that threaten both commercial and military vessels navigating the Black Sea. The group operates under a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the three participating countries, focusing on their territorial waters and exclusive economic zones. The agreement covers three years, with operations phased throughout the year. The leadership of the task group will rotate annually among the three nations. Bulgaria is set to take command in the first half of 2025, followed by Romania in the latter half.
