Russia has fired two missiles on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv - in flagrant disregard of its neighbour, and of the United Nations, of which it is a member.
The explosions rocked the city, which has had relative peace for a fortnight - and coincided with a visit to Ukraine from the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres.
"The war is an absurdity in the 21st century," he said during a tour of devastated areas.
"The war is evil."
Guterres has said the UN is unable to take part in peace talks being negotiated by countries including France and Germany, but has also called them a "failure".
On Thursday (Friday NZT), he blamed the Security Council - of which Russia is a permanent member - for being unable to stop Russia's invasion.
READ MORE
The Kremlin used its veto power on the Council to stymie resolutions demanding it back down from the conflict.
Now the General Assembly has hit back, passing a resolution that demands a debate each time a country on the Security Council uses its veto.
The diplomatic response comes as countries allied with Ukraine ramp up their support.
United States president Joe Biden is asking his government to agree to another NZ$50 billion of funding to Ukraine - to be used for both military aid, and direct cash to help the Ukrainian government.
The US has also sent troops to train up Ukrainian forces on how to use the weapons it's delivered.
The Americans are set to be joined by 8,000 soldiers from the UK - one of the largest deployments from the UK since the Cold War.
