Ukraine war: UN states "complain" Russian attack - but why did three dozen states abstain?

Created: 03/02/2022, 22:22

By: Christiane Kuehl

One of 35 abstentions on the Russia resolution: China's UN Ambassador Zhang Jun during his speech at the UN General Assembly © Wang Ying via www.imago-images.de

In its resolution, the UN General Assembly "deplores" the Russian attack on Ukraine by a large majority.

But 35 countries abstained, including China and India.

New York/Munich – In a resolution, the UN General Assembly in New York called on Russia to withdraw from Ukraine “immediately”.

141 of the more than 190 member states voted in favor of the resolution* at the emergency session on Wednesday.

However, this also means that a not insignificant number of states did not want to agree to the text, despite several amendments.

And that despite the fact that almost all speakers in the debate on the Ukraine conflict* criticized the war itself and the risks of a military escalation.

Only five states rejected the resolution, including Russia itself, only its allies Belarus and Syria and the two internationally largely isolated states of Eritrea and North Korea.

More interesting is the list of the 35 countries that abstained.

As before in the UN Security Council, these included China* and India.

In the resolution, member states "deplore in the strongest terms" the Russian invasion of Ukraine and condemn the decision by Russian President Vladimir Putin* to put his country's nuclear forces on high alert.

Originally, the text was intended to "condemn" Russia's attack.

But the text has been watered down several times to allow more UN states to agree.

China, India, Pakistan: Almost three dozen countries abstained.

Why?

Ukraine's UN Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya had earlier urged those countries considering abstaining because this was not "their war".

"This is a mistake.

Evil will never stop,” said .Kyslytsya.

It is always demanding more space and will continue to spread if tolerated.

His conclusion: "If Ukraine doesn't survive, the UN won't survive." Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock had also called for people to vote for the resolution.

Russia had "brutally attacked" the international peace order.

"That's why this war isn't just about Ukraine, it's not just about Europe, it's about all of us."

But that was apparently not enough for 35 countries.

In addition to China, India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, South Africa, Tanzania, Nicaragua, as well as Vietnam and several Central Asian countries abstained.

In the case of China, approval would have been a real surprise.

Even Beijing's abstention earlier in the UN Security Council was considered a success.

Beijing has been walking a tightrope since the Russian invasion, emphasizing Ukraine's territorial integrity while acknowledging the legitimacy of Russian security concerns.

Until the attack, China was clearly on “Team Russia” and has cautiously distanced itself from Moscow since the beginning of the war*.

But it wasn't enough for approval.

Beijing continues to maneuver strategically between the parties.

The resolution was not subjected to "extensive consultations with the entire membership" of the assembly, China's UN Ambassador Zhang Jun officially justified the abstention.

She also "did not fully consider the history and complexity of the current crisis." The fact that the crisis is "complex" is part of the standard repertoire of Chinese diplomats these days.

"Ukraine should serve as a communication bridge between East and West, and not as a front line of rivalry between major powers," Zhang stressed in his speech on Monday.

An atmosphere for direct talks would have to be created, and tensions should not be exacerbated.

Beijing is now even being discussed as a mediator between Ukraine and Russia.

Ukraine crisis: India, the world's largest democracy, abstains

The fact that countries from Russia's backyard abstained is probably due to their close ties to Moscow: Kazakhstan, Tajikistan or Kyrgyzstan are not considered flawless democracies.

Mongolia, with its few people and long border with Russia, may fear retaliation.

Pakistan, in turn, is a close ally of China.

But why is India, the largest democracy in the world, which is currently gradually rapprochement with the USA, abstaining?

India has traditionally maintained close ties with Russia*.

Moscow has been a major arms supplier to the South Asian country for decades.

More than half of India's warplanes and all Indian tanks come

from Russia , according to

Russia also backed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's uncompromising policies in the troubled Muslim-majority region of Kashmir.

Conversely, India is part of the four-party security alliance "Quad".

That implicitly opposes China's rise.

The other members are the USA, Australia and Japan.

Modi has therefore been trying to maintain a neutral position since the beginning of the Russian all-out attack on Ukraine;

he phoned both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin and expressed concern about the violence.

Brazil: zigzag course in the Ukraine crisis

Brazil's approval of the resolution, on the other hand, is almost surprising.

The country's UN ambassador had already voted in the UN Security Council to condemn Russia.

On Sunday, however, President Jair Bolsonaro committed himself and his country to strict neutrality.

Russia and Ukraine are "practically brother nations," he said at a press conference.

He only wants to form his opinion on the war when a final report is available.

The right-leaning president also stressed that he opposes any sanctions that could have a negative impact on Brazil - citing Russian fertilizers as vital to the country's vast agribusiness sector.

Bolsonaro also said he didn't think Putin's troops would shed blood en masse in Ukraine.

It was initially not known whether the last few days had changed his mind or whether the Brazilian UN ambassador was going his own way.