"I imagine my family in one of those houses that are now destroyed and blackened. I see my granddaughters running in panic. War is absurd in the 21st century, no war is acceptable in the 21st century", said the Secretary-General of the United Nations.

António Guterres made these statements to journalists in front of dilapidated houses in Borodianka, accompanied by Ukrainian soldiers and local authorities.

The UN secretary general arrived this morning in Borodianka, a town where Ukrainians accuse the Russians of having committed crimes during the occupation of the region in March, reported the France-Presse (AFP) news agency.

In what is his first visit to Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion on February 24, António Guterres has an appointment this afternoon with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, having also visited the towns of Bucha and Irpin in the morning.

In Bucha, the Secretary-General of the United Nations stressed the importance of an investigation into possible war crimes.

"I appeal to the Russian Federation to accept and cooperate with the International Criminal Court," Guterres said during his visit to a mass grave, expressing "full support" for an ICC investigation.

“When we talk about war crimes, we cannot forget that the worst crime is war itself”, he added.

António Guterres also visited Irpin where he stressed that "whenever there is a war the highest price" is paid by the people.

The UN Secretary-General arrived in Ukraine on Wednesday night after a visit to Moscow on Tuesday, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and urged Russia to work with the UN to enable the withdrawal of civilians from bombed areas, mainly in eastern and southern Ukraine, where Russia is concentrating its offensive.

Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, triggering a war that has claimed a number of civilian and military casualties yet to be determined.

The UN confirmed on Wednesday that at least 2,787 civilians had died and 3,152 were injured, but maintained that the numbers were likely to be considerably higher.

The conflict drove more than 5.3 million people to flee Ukraine, in Europe's worst refugee crisis since World War II (1939-1945).