STORY
The UK has called on Russia to stop threatening Ukraine’s capital and end attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure, warning that such actions breach international humanitarian law and undermine the European security order built after the Second World War.
Ankur Narayan, the UK’s Politico-Military Counsellor at the OSCE, made the statement in Vienna on 6 May 2026. He said Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine had caused “horrific casualties” and represented a clear breach of OSCE principles, including the Helsinki Final Act.
The UK said Ukraine was exercising its right of self-defence under the UN Charter and repeated that Britain would continue to support Kyiv in line with international law. Narayan also backed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s latest call for a ceasefire, saying Russia must demonstrate a commitment to peace by agreeing to a ceasefire as a first step towards a full and lasting end to hostilities.
The statement strongly criticised Moscow’s threats to strike the heart of Kyiv and warnings to diplomatic missions to leave. Narayan said any deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure and civilian objects would be a serious violation of international humanitarian law.