51 Countries Sign Declaration Urging Russia to Accept Immediate Ceasefire in Ukraine

Representatives from 51 countries have signed a declaration calling on Russia to accept an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in Ukraine, according to Anadolu Agency, with the document signed ahead of a United Nations Security Council meeting on the conflict.

The declaration adds to a series of international statements calling for an end to hostilities since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Ukraine and its allies have repeatedly pressed for Russia to agree to a ceasefire without preconditions, while Russian officials have in the past linked any halt in fighting to broader negotiations over territorial and security demands.

The signing took place in the lead-up to a scheduled UN Security Council session focused on the situation in Ukraine, a forum that has repeatedly served as a venue for competing statements from Ukraine's allies and Russia since the war began. The Security Council's ability to take binding action on the conflict has remained limited due to Russia's veto power as a permanent member.

The declaration's signatories were not individually listed in the available report, though the scale of 51 countries suggests broad international backing for the call, consistent with previous UN General Assembly resolutions condemning Russia's invasion that have drawn similarly wide support.

Ukraine has continued to seek increased diplomatic and military support from allied nations as the war continues, while diplomatic efforts toward a broader peace settlement have so far not produced a lasting resolution.

No immediate response from Russian officials to the declaration was included in the report.