The UN General Assembly overwhelmingly condemns the Russian invasion of Ukraine

After two days in which the speeches of 117 of its 193 member countries have been heard, the UN Extraordinary General Assembly has voted a resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine that urges Moscow to withdraw immediately and unconditionally from the neighboring country.

The initiative obtained 141 votes in favor, five against (Belarus, North Korea, Eritrea, Russia and Syria) and 35 abstentions and, although it is not binding, it shows the total isolation of Russia in the international community.

The decision to hold this extraordinary plenary session of the organization - the eleventh in its entire history and the first since 1982, after the invasion of the Golan Heights - was the way to overcome Russia's veto of a similar resolution in the Council Security, the executive body of the UN.

The adopted text is a harsh condemnation of "Russia's aggression against Ukraine" and a sign of commitment "to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including its territorial waters."

On the Crimean peninsula is the base of the Russian Black Sea fleet.

The resolution demands that Russia "immediately cease resorting to the use of force against Ukraine" and "immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its military forces" from the neighboring country.

It also deplores the nuclear alert declared by President Vladimir Putin, a missing mention in the Security Council resolution that Russia vetoed on Friday.

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Although the resolution adopted by the Assembly is not executive, it does map the position of the international community regarding the war and, above all, Russia, "where a European dictator wants to restore the former glory of the past", in the words of the US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who stressed that Russia is preparing to "increase the brutality" of its offensive against Ukraine.

Closing the turn of speakers was the Ukrainian ambassador, Sergii Kislitsia, who did not spare details of the barbarism suffered by his country, such as the bombing of residential areas or the Babi Yar Holocaust memorial in Kiev.

"Russia's objective is not only the occupation, but the genocide" of the Ukrainians, he assured.

“It is very easy to sign the UN Charter in times of peace.

But it is our duty to confirm and implement it in times of war.

Please, respect the UN Charter, respect your Secretary General”, urged Kislitsia to applause, who thanked the member states for welcoming refugees.

The first reply was from his Russian counterpart, Vasili Nebenzia, from his seat, without going up to the speakers' lectern.

Nebenzia repeated the Kremlin's argument: "[Moscow's] refusal to support today's draft resolution is a vote in favor of a peaceful Ukraine free of radicalism and neo-Nazism."

He was followed by the representatives of Serbia and Syria.

The first gave the surprise by announcing the support of his country, a traditional ally of Russia, for the resolution “and for the territorial integrity of the member states”, a clear allusion to the dispute with Kosovo.

The Syrian ambassador called the resolution "political propaganda" and "hypocrisy" that "interferes in the internal affairs of a country," and announced his vote against it.

To be adopted, the resolution, promoted by the countries of the European Union in coordination with the Government of Kiev, had to reach two thirds of the favorable votes.

Late this Tuesday, a list of supporters from 94 countries circulated, almost half of those that make up the organization and a result similar to that obtained in 2014 by another resolution condemning the annexation of Crimea, with a hundred supports, but well below the final result reached this Wednesday.

The result, of a clear political and symbolic significance on the extent of Russia's global isolation, has not been a surprise, although until the last minute the decision of non-Western countries, many of them with a long tradition of non-alignment, was doubted. inherited precisely from the politics of blocs in the Cold War.

The Arab world kept a low profile in speeches with the exception of Kuwait, which was invaded in 1990 by neighboring Iraq and strongly condemned the Russian offensive.

The United Arab Emirates, which abstained in the Security Council vote on Friday, voted today in favor of the resolution.

Most of the countries of Africa and Latin America supported the initiative, while the two great giants of Asia, China and India, opted for abstention.