Ukraine war: Pakistan, China abstain from UN vote

On the eve of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly voted and approved a resolution demanding Russia to end the Ukraine war and “immediately” withdraw its forces.

As fighting raged on in Ukraine’s east and south, its allies around the world showed their support on the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion.

During the vote in the 193-member UNGA, 141 member nations voted in favour of the resolution. While 7 opposed the resolution, 32 members. including Pakistan, China, Iran, India and others abstained from voting.

Pakistan’s Permanent Representative at UN, Munir Akram said few clauses of the resolution are against Pakistan’s stance.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Deputy U.N. Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy dismissed the action at the United Nations as “useless”.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy hailed the vote.

“This resolution is a powerful signal of unflagging global support for Ukraine,” he said in a post on Twitter.

Paris lit up the Eiffel Tower in the Ukrainian flag colours of blue and yellow and people draped in Ukrainian flags gathered at a vigil in London. In Brussels, European Union buildings were similarly lit up in the colours.