After Washington, the Ukrainian delegation continued its work in New York to raise the issue of Crimea with UN member states, especially those in the Global South.

In total, the delegation held 16 meetings. Among the countries outside the EU and North America, the delegation met with the Permanent Representatives of Ecuador, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, the Dominican Republic, Australia and Guatemala. In addition, meetings were held with diplomats of the Permanent Missions of Brazil, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Mexico, Chile and Mozambique.

During the meetings, Maria Tomak, Head of the Crimean Platform’s Support Service, raised the issue of Crimea as an integral part of Ukraine, as well as the need to defend the territorial integrity of the Ukrainian state, including the Crimean peninsula, in the UN. These conversations took place in the light of various proposals for “peace initiatives” that are currently being submitted to Ukraine from around the world.

Ms. Tomak called instead to support the “peace formula” proposed by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and shared information about the situation in the occupied Crimea in the context of a full-scale invasion.

The Ukrainian delegation also met with its Western allies in New York, including the Deputy Permanent Representatives of the United States, the United Kingdom, and France. In addition, the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the United Nations hosted a large closed-door briefing with more than 20 representatives of the delegations of UN member states. The briefing was dedicated to the situation in Crimea.

Ms. Tomak spoke about the current situation on the occupied peninsula, which is important on the eve of the debate on the situation in the occupied territories of Ukraine, which is to be held at the UN in July. In addition, the conversation actually took place on the eve of the start of the process of drafting the next Resolution on the human rights situation in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.

Maria Tomak, among other things, shared information about Ukraine’s steps aimed at developing a Strategy for the Reintegration of Crimea, which aroused great interest among Western partner countries.

We also had a chance to meet and talk with representatives of the UN Secretary General’s Secretariat, in particular, with the UN Assistant Secretary General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas Myroslav Jenča. Mr. Jenca noted that the Secretariat remains committed to the principles of the UN, the principles of the UN Charter, which means supporting the territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders. He also noted that the grain initiative, which is supported and supervised directly and personally by the UN Secretary-General, is very important.