It’s a “clear message” addressed to Moscow, according to Washington. The UN General Assembly condemned, on Wednesday 12 October, by a large majority, the “illegal annexations” of Ukrainian territories by Russia. The General Assembly of 193 Member States adopted this resolution with 143 votes in favour, against five countries against and 35 who abstained.
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Those who voted against. The five states that voted against are, unsurprisingly, Russia, Belarus, Syria, North Korea and Nicaragua. The latter, who is coming under ever harsher criticism from the international community in terms of human rights, abstained in a previous vote in March and this time took a step towards Moscow.
Those who abstained. China, India, Pakistan and South Africa are among the main countries that have refused to take a clear position. In most cases, this vote appears as a desire not to offend Moscow. Conversely, it may reflect a distancing from Russian strategy, as for Eritrea, which supported Russia in March and abstained this time.
Before the vote, the United States had urged as many countries as possible not to abstain. “Today Russia is invading Ukraine. But tomorrow another nation’s territory could be violated. You could be next.”, had launched the American ambassador to the UN. The French representative had added: “What is happening today in Europe may be happening elsewhere tomorrow: in Asia, Africa, Latin America…”
Those who voted for. Compared to the March vote condemning the invasion of Ukraine, opposition to Russia has strengthened very slightly, with three new votes against Moscow. Bangladesh, Iraq and Senegal, which abstained in March, this time condemned the Russian actions. Brazil and Gabon also supported this resolution, after having abstained on this same text, at the end of September, during a vote blocked in the Security Council by a Russian veto.
With this text, presented by Ukraine and co-drafted by the European Union, the West, led by Washington, intended to demonstrate that Vladimir Putin was “isolated” on the international scene. “143 nations have stood on the side of freedom, sovereignty and territorial integrity”welcomed Joe Biden, the President of the United States.
The adopted resolution condemns “the attempted illegal annexation of the Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhia” after “so-called referendums” judged “illegal”. The text calls for no state to recognize these annexations and calls for the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops who entered Ukraine on February 24.