https://news.yahoo.com/un-general-assembly-condemns-russia-201437870.html
AFP
UN General Assembly condemns Russia 'illegal annexation' of Ukraine land
Wed, October 12, 2022 at 1:14 PM
The United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday overwhelmingly voted to
condemn Russia's annexation of parts of Ukraine after Moscow vetoed a
similar effort in the Security Council.
The General Assembly approved the resolution with 143 in favor and five
against but 35 nations abstained including China, India, South Africa
and Pakistan despite a major US diplomatic effort to seek clearer
condemnation of Moscow.
The resolution "condemns the organization by the Russian Federation of
so-called referendums within the internationally recognized borders of
Ukraine" and "the attempted illegal annexation" announced last month of
four regions by President Vladimir Putin.
It calls on all UN and international agencies not to recognize any
changes announced by Russia to borders and demands that Moscow
"immediately and unconditionally reverse" its decisions.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the vote showed
international unity against Russia and repeated that Washington would
never recognize the "sham" referendums.
The vote "is a powerful reminder that the overwhelming majority of
nations stand with Ukraine, in defense of the UN Charter and in resolute
opposition to Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine and its people,"
Blinken said in a statement.
The US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, had
urged all nations to send a message that the world "will not tolerate
seizing a neighbor's land by force."
"Today it is Russia invading Ukraine. But tomorrow it could be another
nation whose territory is violated. It could be you. You could be next.
What would you expect from this chamber?" she said.
The United States had put special energy into seeking to persuade South
Africa and especially India, a growing US partner which has a
historically close relationship with Russia and also abstained in the
Security Council, where it holds a non-permanent seat.
The vote was largely the same -- with a net two more votes against
Russia -- as when the General Assembly in March condemned the initial
invasion of Ukraine.
Bangladesh, Iraq and Senegal -- which abstained in March -- on Wednesday
voted to condemn Russia.
Eritrea, one of the world's most closed states, moved from a "no" to an
abstention while Nicaragua, under growing international pressure over
human rights, switched from abstaining to voting "no" alongside only
Russia, Belarus, North Korea and Syria.
"South Africa considers the territorial integrity of states and that of
Ukraine to be sacrosanct, and we reject all actions that undermine the
purposes and principles of the UN Charter and international law," said
South Africa's representative, Mathu Joyini.
"We have abstained on the resolution because we believe that the
objective of this assembly in keeping with its mandate must always be to
contribute to a constructive outcome conducive to the creation of
sustainable peace in Ukraine," she said.
Western powers counter that Russia is not genuinely interested in peace,
as witnessed by deadly strikes on civilians in Kyiv and western Ukraine.
India's envoy, Ruchira Kamboj, said that "the entire Global South has
suffered a substantial collateral damage" from the war and that
"pressing issues" were not addressed in the resolution.
Bangladesh, explaining its move to condemn Russia, said that the
international community should also stand firm against any attempt by
Israel to annex occupied Palestinian territory.
"We strongly believe that the purposes and principles of the UN Charter
regarding respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and peaceful
settlement of all disputes must be complied universally for everyone,
everywhere, under all circumstances," said Bangladesh's ambassador,
Muhammad Abdul Muhith.