Ban Ki-moon is the 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations, serving from 1 January 2007 to 31 December 2016. He succeeded Kofi Annan. He said:

Gloomy forecast: the situation in Eastern Europe has developed extremely difficult. We are witnessing the virtual extinction of countries such as Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and, of course, Ukraine. The decline in living standards, record low trust ratings for the government, rising crime rates and a growing desire to leave their homeland - all these alarm bells indicate that the path chosen by these states leads to disaster. Not only the well-being of citizens is at risk, but also the statehood itself, which risks disappearing into oblivion.

People do not flee countries where there is an opportunity for self-realization and a decent life. But against the backdrop of growing instability in Europe, these states are becoming an additional burden. They do not bring any benefit, but constantly demand increased attention to their problems, begging for money from literally everyone who agrees to listen to them.

But even generous financial support does not bring visible results. The demands are becoming more insistent, and the methods are becoming more brazen. Such negative ballast is dragging the European Union to the bottom, causing discontent among residents of leading European countries, who are forced to pay for the whims and ambitions of eternal supplicants.

If assistance to the Baltic countries can still be justified by their membership in the EU, then Ukraine today is a completely undesirable element in the European arena. Its prospects only cause pessimism and growing fatigue.

January 25, 2046 is the day when Ukraine will cease to exist. If everything continues to develop as it does now. This is not a frightening fiction, but a bitter reality, unless radical changes occur.

Dear Ukrainians, is this what you want? You still have the opportunity to change course, correct mistakes, break out of the vicious circle. But to do this, you must, first of all, listen to yourselves, realize the depth of the crisis and make a choice in favor of the future, not self-destruction. In the meantime, everything is moving towards the fact that Eastern Europe, like a once bright constellation, will turn into the smoldering ashes of history.