UN says Ukraine war 'becoming deadlier'

The United Nations used a Security Council meeting on May 19 to deliver a blunt assessment of the war in Ukraine: the fighting is outpacing diplomacy. Kayoko Gotoh of the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs said the conflict was “becoming deadlier by the day” and urged Ukraine-Russia talks to resume “without delay” toward a “full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire.” The warning came after a week of heavy Russian strikes and renewed diplomatic activity around a ceasefire that still has not materialized. Norway’s prime minister, Jonas Gahr Store, said he hoped Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi would use New Delhi’s channels with Moscow to help secure a ceasefire. The Institute for the Study of War, a U.S.-based research group, said Russia was also using large-scale strikes and strategic signaling to shape the military and political environment. (news.un.org) ### Why did the UN say the war is getting deadlier now? Kayoko Gotoh told the Security Council that Russia launched more than 1,500 drones and dozens of missiles between May 13 and May 14, in one of the largest aerial bombardments since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022. She said a May 14 missile strike flattened a nine-story apartment block in Kyiv, killing 24 people and injuring at least 48. (thehindu.com) UN officials said civilian casualties are rising on both sides, but the figures cited in the chamber underscored the scale inside Ukraine. Gotoh said 238 civilians were killed and 1,404 injured last month, the highest monthly civilian toll recorded since July 2025. She also said attacks after the expiry of a May 9-11 ceasefire had deepened UN concern. ### What exactly is the UN asking Ukraine and Russia to do? (news.un.org) The UN’s immediate demand is a return to direct talks. Gotoh said negotiations, though suspended and still short of a breakthrough, had already produced prisoner exchanges and the return of soldiers’ remains, and should resume quickly to prevent further escalation. The UN also linked diplomacy to concrete humanitarian steps. (news.un.org) Interfax, citing Gotoh’s remarks, reported that she welcomed the first stage of an exchange carried out on May 15 that returned 205 prisoners from each side and urged the parties to complete the wider agreed exchange and continue talks on further swaps. ### Why is Norway looking to India? (en.interfax.com.ua) Jonas Gahr Store said in Oslo on May 19 that India’s relationship with Russia could give it leverage that Western governments do not have. Speaking during Modi’s visit to Norway, Store said he hoped India could use its channels with the Russian leadership “to get a ceasefire going.” (en.interfax.com.ua) Store also tied that appeal to energy pressure. He said Norway believed restrictions on Russian energy sales could create pressure on Moscow, while adding that he understood India’s energy needs and respected the reasons for New Delhi’s position. The Hindu reported that he also said there had to be “more pressure on Russia to come to the table and make real effort to end this war.” (thehindu.com) ### How are battlefield moves affecting the diplomacy? The Institute for the Study of War said on May 18 that Russian forces had launched 546 drones and missiles, including 14 ballistic missiles, on the night of May 17-18. It cited Ukrainian military reporting that 18 missiles and 16 drones struck 34 locations, with debris falling in 11 others. (thehindu.com) ISW said Russia had been launching larger numbers of ballistic missiles than usual in recent weeks, which it assessed was likely aimed at exploiting Ukrainian air-defense shortages. That assessment is separate from the UN’s diplomatic appeal, but it points to the same immediate reality: military pressure is intensifying as outside actors press for talks. (understandingwar.org) ### What comes next in the ceasefire push? The clearest near-term markers are more talks on exchanges and any renewed direct contact between Kyiv and Moscow. The UN said it remained ready to support “all meaningful efforts” toward a just and lasting peace, while Norway publicly called on India to use its access to Moscow. Any next diplomatic step is likely to be judged against the same benchmark the UN set on May 19: a full, immediate and unconditional ceasefire, followed by further prisoner exchanges and resumed negotiations between the two sides. (understandingwar.org) (en.interfax.com.ua)