Press Conference by the United States Representative and President of the Security Council for the month of May, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield on the programme of work of the Security Council in May.

The United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, urged Russia on Tuesday (3 May) to continue "to do the right thing” and guarantee safe passage for any civilians who wish to leave conflict areas in Ukraine.

Thomas-Greenfield was speaking to journalists in New York following the news that more than 100 civilians have successfully been evacuated from the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, in an operation successfully coordinated by the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The Permanent representative said Russia “must also allow the delivery of humanitarian assistance, particularly food and medicines, to those who are left behind, as well as safe passage for volunteers who have gone in to help those individuals.”

Guaranteeing that the United States “*will continue to press the Russians on this”, the ambassador noted the work of “humanitarian organizations who are working under extraordinarily difficult and sometimes dangerous circumstances to provide support to the people in need in Mariupol and in other locations inside of Ukraine.”

Thomas-Greenfield also addressed the reports that the U.S. Supreme Court has voted to strike down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision, which guaranteed federal constitutional protections of abortion rights.

The Permanent Representative noted that “the Supreme Court hasn't spoken yet”, but the leaked decision “raises a number of concerns”.

“In our international policies in terms of support for women and girls reproductive health, we will continue to support those efforts,” she said.

The United States has the presidency of the Security Council during the month of May.