The UN has launched an initiative for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine

Speaking at the Security Council's first meeting of 2024 on Wednesday, Rosemary DiCarlo added: "The casualties of war are high, and in terms of death, destruction and instability, they are catastrophic." Noting that it was time to think about the consequences of the war, which must be stopped, she added: “In recent weeks, Ukraine has been subjected to the most massive rocket attacks since the beginning of the illegal war, and in conjunction with the New Year holidays, Russian missiles and drones have struck several cities across Ukraine.” DiCarlo noted: “Since the beginning of the massive Russian attack, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has confirmed the deaths and injuries of 29,579 Ukrainian civilians, including the deaths of 10,242 people, including 575 children, and the injuries of 19,337 people, including 1,264 children.” Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, at a press conference with Lithuania's president on Wednesday evening, once again emphasized his country's urgent need for advanced air defense systems to combat Russian shelling, while asking Kiev's Western backers to supply missile defense systems as the Ukrainian army previously used numerous surface-to-air missiles to destroy air targets. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Zelensky has put a lot of pressure on various international players, especially in the Western world, to continue the war with Russia by providing assistance to Kyiv. Meanwhile, Sergei Ryzhenko, head of the Mechnikov hospital in Dnepr, Ukraine, said that in recent weeks the center has seen a 30 percent increase in the number of wounded soldiers, many of them disabled and paralyzed for life. He added: “Since the beginning of the conflict with Russia, about 3,000 Ukrainian army soldiers have had their limbs amputated.”