HEADLINE | UN to Russia: Leave Ukraine immediately
Composite photo shows an electronic sign displaying voting by delegations adopting a resolution on Ukraine during a high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York yesterday to mark one year since Russia invaded Ukraine. Left image shows a snow-covered corpse of a soldier next to a destroyed Russian military vehicle in Kharkiv, Ukraine on Feb. 25, 2022 / STAR / File
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BREAKING NEWS:
Ukraine: Russia doubled number of ships in Black Sea, strikes possible
Ukraine’s biggest national flag on the country’s highest flagpole is seen at a compound of the World War II museum in Kyiv, Ukraine, December 16, 2021. Picture taken with a drone. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
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Ukraine’s military said Russia had doubled the number of ships on active duty in the Black Sea on Friday and predicted this could be a preparation for more missile strikes.
Russia’s navy has regularly launched missiles from its Black Sea Fleet as part of an effort by Moscow to target Ukrainian critical infrastructure and power-generating facilities.
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Philippines among 141 that backed UN resolution
UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations voted overwhelmingly Thursday to demand Russia immediately and unconditionally withdraw its troops from Ukraine, marking the first year of the war with a call for a “just and lasting” peace.
Ukraine earned strong backing in a nonbinding vote that saw 141 of the 193 UN members in support, seven opposed and 32, including China and India, abstaining.
Coming on the eve of the first anniversary of the brutal war, support for Kyiv was little-changed from that of last October when 143 countries voted to condemn Russia’s declared annexation of four Ukraine regions.
Memento Maxima Digital Marketing“Today, United Nations General Assembly has just spoken very clear,” said European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. “This vote shows that the international community stands with Ukraine.”
US President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, called the vote “a powerful call for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine in line with the principles of the UN Charter.”
The vote came after two days of debate during which Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba urged the international community to choose “between good and evil.”
He rejected the idea that Kyiv only enjoyed the support of the West – the European Union, the United States and their key allies.
“The vote defies the argument that the Global South does not stand on Ukraine’s side, because many countries representing Latin America, Africa, Asia voted in favor today,” Kuleba said.
“The support is much broader, and it will only continue to be consolidated and to be solidified,” he added.
Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, expressed gratitude to all those “who stood up for Ukraine on the anniversary of the unprovoked Russian aggression.”
“The world understands whose side the truth is on,” he said.
‘Imperialist plan’
The resolution reaffirmed support for Ukraine’s “sovereignty” and “territorial integrity,” rejecting any Russian claims to the parts of the country it occupies.
It also demanded “that the Russian Federation immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders,” and called “for a cessation of hostilities.”
The vote showed Moscow’s continued isolation on the world stage after 12 months of war.
It only earned support from six other nations: Belarus, Syria, North Korea, Mali, Nicaragua and Eritrea.
Despite its limited backing, Russia has used its veto power to block any binding motions against it in the UN Security Council.
Instead, the UN General Assembly has taken up the issue, displaying solid support for Kyiv in successive votes.
“Next year, we should not meet here to mark the second anniversary of this senseless war of aggression,” said Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi during the debate.
“Russia can and must stop, tomorrow,” French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said.
“This war waged by Russia is everybody’s business because it threatens the existence of a state, because it represents a domineering and imperialist plan and because it denies the existence of borders.”
But Russia dismissed the resolution, with its UN representative Vasily Nebenzya calling Ukraine “neo-Nazi” and accusing the West of sacrificing the country and the developing world in their desire to beat Russia.
“They are ready to plunge the entire world into the abyss of war” to maintain their own “hegemony,” Nebenzya said.
China, India still abstain
The vote showed India and China had not been swayed to outright condemn Moscow’s invasion, even while both have criticized Moscow’s threats to deploy nuclear weapons in the conflict.
Before the vote Dai Bing, China’s deputy representative at the United Nations, took a neutral stance, calling on both sides to cease fighting and enter peace talks.
“We support Russia and Ukraine moving towards each other, resuming direct dialogue as soon as possible,” he said.
But he also gave voice to one of Russia’s justifications for the invasion, that its own security was under threat by Ukraine’s tilt toward Western Europe and NATO.
Any settlement, he said, should give “due regard to … the reasonable security concerns of all countries, thereby properly addressing their legitimate security aspirations.”
