Ghana has urged parties in the Russia-Ukraine crisis to heed calls for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire.

Addressing the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, Ghana’s Permanent Representative to UNSC, Ambassador Harold Agyeman called on the “Russian Federation to withdraw all its invading troops from the internationally recognized borders of Ukraine.”

He said the further release of any chemical or biological agents to Ukraine, whether deliberate or accidental, would cause an immeasurable consequence on not only Ukraine but the stability of the global security as well.

According to him, the country is “concerned by the transmission of the shocks of the war in Ukraine within the global economy and the disproportionate impact that developing countries and small economies are having to bear on account of this war”.

Ambassador Harold Agyeman noted that Ghana reminds the warring factions of their obligation to respect and comply with their commitments under international law, international humanitarian law and human rights laws.

“We call for the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers in Ukraine in accordance with the provisions of the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949 relative to the protection of civilian persons in the time of war,” he added.

He explained that Ghana believes the call for a verification regime for the Biological Weapons Convention is valid and such action should be done in a ‘reasonable’ and ‘sensible’ manner.

“In concluding, let me recall Ghana’s long held view that the possession or proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction, including chemical and biological weapons, neither assures international peace nor national security. We all, therefore, have a responsibility to ensure that we eliminate such weapons from the present civilization we are seeking to build,” Ambassador Harold Agyeman intimated.