UN's Guterres warns world walking into 'wider war' amid Russia-Ukraine conflict

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday expressed fears that the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War could develop into a wider conflict and lamented the diminishing likelihood of a peace agreement.

"The Russian invasion of Ukraine is inflicting untold suffering on the Ukrainian people, with profound global implications," he said in a speech, according to The Hill. "The prospects for peace keep diminishing. The chances of further escalation and bloodshed keep growing."

"I fear the world is not sleepwalking into a wider war. I fear it is doing so with its eyes wide open," he warned. Guterres's remarks come as the conflict nears its one-year anniversary on Feb. 24.

Russia has warned that it would "gain the world's attention" on that date as the Kremlin prepares to mount a much-anticipated renewal of its offensive in the Ukrainian east to capitalize on the piecemeal gains it has made in recent months and reclaim the momentum for a more significant blow against Kyiv.

Guterres pointed to the Doomsday Clock, a metric indicating the proximity of the world to a cataclysmic event.

"The Doomsday Clock is now 90 seconds to midnight, which means 90 seconds to total global catastrophe," he continued, per the outlet. "This is the closest the clock has ever stood to humanity's darkest hour — and closer than even during the height of the Cold War."

"In truth, the Doomsday Clock is a global alarm clock. We need to wake up — and get to work," he then warned.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.