Russia Ukraine war: World leaders meeting at United Nations General Assembly in New York must work to deliver peace – Angus Robertson MSP

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia has set off a global food and energy crisis which will dominate discussions for some time to come.

A cyclist rides past a building partially destroyed by a missile strike in the centre of Kharkiv, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine (Picture: Sergey Bobok/AFP via Getty Images)

However, sadly there is no reason to believe that Vladimir Putin’s regime in the Kremlin will end its aggression, withdraw its troops and allow unfettered international food transport to begin once again.

Antonio Guterres, the Secretary General of the United Nations, has shared his pessimistic analysis of the situation, saying: “It would be naive to think that we are close to the possibility of a peace deal.”

In a message to the world's young people, the world’s top diplomat said: “You are the strongest voices calling for change and for world leaders to wage peace instead of war.

“As global leaders come to the UN General Assembly, I pledge to support young people to push them to work together for a more peaceful and tolerant world.”

Now more than ever, we need the global community to come together and work for peace, to end global poverty and to tackle the climate emergency.

The United Nations will only be able to help solve these profound challenges of our age if its member states are prepared to deliver.

Let’s hope that the leaders attending the UN General Assembly meeting in New York – which is due to start today and continue until Monday next week – do just that.

Angus Robertson is the SNP MSP for Edinburgh Central and Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary in the Scottish Government