In Pics: Guterres Tours Kyiv, Calls Russian War 'Absurdity'

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the Russian war in Ukraine as "evil" and absurd.

The statements came during Guterres' visit to Borodyanka, a city near Kyiv, on Thursday.

"I imagine my family in one of those houses that are now destroyed and black. I see my granddaughters running away in panic. War is an absurdity in the 21st century. The war is evil. There is no way war can be acceptable in the 21st century," Guterres said.

During his visit to the town of Bucha where hundreds of dead civilians were discovered after Russian troops pulled out, Guterres called on Russia to cooperate with the International Criminal Court (ICC) on investigations into possible war crimes carried out during its invasion of Ukraine.

"I fully support the ICC and I appeal to the Russian Federation to accept, to cooperate with the ICC. But when we talk about war crimes, we cannot forget that the worst of crimes is war itself," he said.

In the meantime, Guterres is set to hold talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy following his tour in Kyiv.

Earlier in the week, the UN leader met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, where the two discussed the possible evacuation of the besieged Azovstal steel complex in the city of Mariupol.

In previous remarks, Eri Kaneko, a spokesperson for the UN chief, affirmed that “He hopes to talk about what can be done to bring peace to Ukraine urgently.”