Observer Editorial, London, 24 May 2020<\/p>\n
T<\/span><\/span>wo months have passed since Ant\u00f3nio Guterres, the UN secretary-general, called on warring parties around the world to lay down their weapons and help fight another battle \u2013 against Covid-19. \u201cThe fury of the virus illustrates the folly of war,\u201d Guterres said. \u201cThat is why I am calling for an immediate global ceasefire <\/a>\u2026 It is time to put armed conflict on lockdown.\u201d<\/p>\n This was and remains an entirely sensible idea. The UN leader\u2019s appeal received strong support from civil society groups, charities, churches and human rights organisations. In Colombia, the Philippines and South Sudan, armed groups initially heeded his call. But to their great shame, the US, China and Russia blocked the plan <\/a>in the UN security council. They continue to do so.<\/p>\n Those who suggest a global ceasefire would be a merely symbolic gesture should listen to the Norwegian Refugee Council. Since 23 March, when Guterres spoke, more than 660,000 people around<\/a> the world have been forced to flee their homes because of armed conflict, it reported last week. Failed ceasefires in Yemen, Libya and Afghanistan continue to take a dreadful daily toll of civilian lives.<\/p>\n \u201cThis not only hurts those who are forced to flee. It seriously undermines joint efforts to combat the virus,\u201d said the NRC\u2019s chief, Jan Egeland. \u201cWhile people are being displaced and killed, powerful members of the UN security council squabble <\/a>like children in a sandbox. World leaders must unite in protecting all communities from Covid-19.\u201d<\/p>\n Donald Trump\u2019s objections to a ceasefire resolution, repeatedly proposed and delayed in recent weeks, have nothing to do with war or virus-related suffering, to which he appears indifferent. Trump dislikes the fact that the latest draft refers, indirectly, to the World Health Organization \u2013 with which he is irrationally feuding as part of his China virus vendetta.<\/p>\n The US had previously objected <\/a>on the grounds that a global ceasefire might inhibit its ability to interdict terrorists, a concern echoed by Russia vis-\u00e0-vis its military operations in Syria. For its part, China insists any resolution explicitly endorses the WHO\u2019s role in combating the pandemic. The result: stalemate.<\/p>\n This pathetic inability on the part of the world\u2019s great powers to show leadership, compassion and common sense at a time of global emergency is dangerous and disheartening. The impasse reflects the decline in the authority of the UN security council. More so, it is an indictment of the irresponsibility of men such as Trump, China\u2019s Xi Jinping, and Russia\u2019s Vladimir Putin.<\/p>\n How on earth do these leaders hope to wield influence and command respect and support when, ignoring basic human decency, they allow personal disputes, selfish political calculations and a myopic interpretation of what constitutes national interest to determine their decisions? This way lies the complete breakdown of international co-operation.<\/p>\n As ever, it will not be they who pay the price. The momentum generated by Guterres\u2019s inspirational call has begun to dissipate. The situation in several conflict zones has even begun to get worse. Northern Yemen is a case in point. A ceasefire declared by US-backed, Saudi-led forces has collapsed even as the virus takes hold <\/a>in one the world\u2019s poorest countries.<\/p>\n Afghanistan is also experiencing an upsurge in instability and illness following the failure of Trump\u2019s risible \u201cpeace plan\u201d \u2013 more accurately termed a US troop withdrawal plan \u2013 to reduce conflict between the Taliban and Afghan government forces. This vacuum is being filled by Isis and other extremists, witness the recent horrific attack on a Kabul maternity hospital.<\/a>Libya is in turmoil, too.<\/p>\n