The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to condemn the annexation by Russia of a large part of the territories of Ukraine and demanded that Russia withdraw its troops from those areas. Saudi Arabia was among the nations that voted in favor of the resolution, the world body said in a statement.
By a margin of 143-5, the General Assembly condemned Russia’s “illegal annexation attempt” of four Ukrainian territories and called on Russia to “immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its military forces.”
The five nations that voted against the measure were Russia, Syria, Nicaragua, North Korea and Belarus. China was among the 35 nations that abstained from voting.
The resolution, which “defends the principles” of the UN Charter, points out that the Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia regions are temporarily occupied by Russia as a result of aggression, violating the territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence from Ukraine.
The General Assembly automatically took up the resolution for debate, prompted by Russia’s use of the veto in the Security Council when its annexation attempt was denounced.
The resolution, which also called on nations to “refrain from any action that could be construed as recognition of such altered status,” marked the strongest support to date for Ukraine by the 193-nation General Assembly since the start of the Russian invasion.
Russia described the resolution as a “politicized and openly provocative” instrument and assured that it is a confrontational message that “could destroy all efforts in favor of a diplomatic solution to the crisis.”
President Joe Biden He said on Wednesday that the world had shown its unity with the vote in the UN General Assembly to condemn the “illegal referendums” held in four Ukrainian regions and Russia’s attempts to annex those territories.
Biden accused Russia of having attacked the essence of the United Nations Charter and of being undermining the very foundations of international peace and security.
“The world has sent a clear message in its response: Russia cannot wipe a sovereign state off the map. She cannot change borders by force. She cannot appropriate a territory of another country, ”said President Biden.
Source: La Opinion
