Russia urges employees of UN Secretariat to be committed to principles of impartiality

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russia said on Wednesday that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov reminded UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres about the "imperative" for employees of UN Secretariat to be committed to principles of impartiality and equidistance.

The Foreign Ministry in a statement said a meeting between the Russian top diplomat and the UN chief took place in New York Tuesday night.

"There was a substantive discussion of various aspects of cooperation between Russia and the United Nations, as well as key issues on the international agenda," the statement said.

According to the ministry, both Lavrov and Guterres agreed on the importance of further strengthening the UN central coordinating role in global politics, taking into account the widest range of views of its member states.

"Sergey Lavrov also emphasized the imperative of strict observance by all staff of the UN Secretariat of the principles of impartiality and equidistance in strict accordance with the Charter of the Organization," it said.

Lavrov arrived in the US on Jan. 21 to take part in the Security Council open debate on the situation in the Gaza Strip.

Israel has mounted a deadly offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, which Tel Aviv said killed 1,200 people.

At least 25,490 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and 63,354 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.