Power can be intoxicating

UN Secretary-General António Manuel de Oliveira Guterres' visit to Kazan to attend BRICS Russia 2024 has met with criticism from Ukraine and its allies. According to Stewart Patrick in a interview in Euronews yesterday, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Guterres' visit could be an attempt to negotiate a peace deal. Guterres shares some of BRICS' concerns about the representativeness of international institutions, continues Stewart Patrick. However, Patrick said it would quote "probably not be well received in Western capitals, because it could be seen as legitimizing Vladimir Putin's policies," unquote. Spokesmen for Guterres did not respond to a request for comment.

That UN Secretary-General Guterres chooses to participate in BRICS Russia 2024 when he previously declined Ukraine's invitation to the first global peace summit held at the Burgenstock Resort in Switzerland on June 15-16, 2024 does not improve his reputation.

In addition, Guterres has been declared persona non grata according to Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz, a rare diplomatic designation. The reason for the declaration is that the UN Secretary General has not condemned Iran's missile attack against Israel in strong enough terms. Guterres, for his part, said he condemned the attack.

If Mr. Guterres fails to negotiate a peace deal at the ongoing summit, his credibility could take a serious hit.