(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon "condemned in the strongest terms" the downing by pro-Russian separatists of an Ukrainian military airplane earlier Saturday in Lugansk, eastern Ukraine, killing 49 soldiers, his press office said in a statement.
It said Ban "believes the continuing violence in eastern Ukraine -- characterized by growing loss of life and a deteriorating humanitarian situation -- highlights the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities and a resolution of the crisis through negotiation and dialogue." Ban expressed concern that recent diplomatic efforts in that direction have not borne fruit and "appeals to all sides to implement urgently the 17 April Geneva Agreement, which offered a clear path to a peaceful solution." Reiterating his support for newly-elected President Petro Poroshenko and the Ukrainian people, Ban said he stands in solidarity with them during this "difficult time," and insisted that everybody "must" do its part to "bring Ukraine back from the brink and ensure its unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity."
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