The General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) approved this Thursday, February 23, with an overwhelming majority of 141 votes, a resolution that demands the “immediate withdrawal” of Russian troops from Ukraine and calls for “a comprehensive, just and lasting”.
The draft resolution, drawn up by Ukraine and allies with the support of the European Union, obtained 141 votes in favour, seven against and 32 abstentions from the 193 Member States of the UN, once again reinforcing Moscow’s isolation on the international scene.
The vote ended with a round of applause, with only Russia, Belarus, Syria, North Korea, Eritrea, Mali and Nicaragua voting against. Among the countries that abstained, China, Angola, Mozambique and Cuba stand out.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky reacted on Twitter to the passing of the resolution, which he said was “a powerful signal of tireless global support for Ukraine”.
On the other hand, Russia’s Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyansky, called action at the United Nations “futile”. “Will it bring peace? No! Will it encourage warmongers? Yes! Thus prolonging the Ukrainian tragedy,” he said on Twitter.
Moscow has previously described the resolution as “unbalanced and anti-Russian” and urged countries to vote against it if it could not be amended. Belarus failed in an attempt to change the text with amendments including “the prevention of a further escalation of the conflict by feeding the parties with lethal weapons”.
The vote came at a special emergency session of the General Assembly to mark Russia’s year of war in Ukraine and after two days of speeches by nearly a hundred states.
Despite not having a binding character, this resolution carries political weight and has shown which countries still refuse to condemn Russia, a year after the war.