India abstains on UNGA resolution calling for de-escalation, peaceful resolution of Ukraine war

United Nations: India abstained on a UN General Assembly draft resolution that called for a de-escalation, an early cessation of hostilities and a peaceful resolution of the war against Ukraine.

The 193-member UN General Assembly voted Monday on the draft resolution ‘Advancing a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine’ tabled by Ukraine and its European allies.

The resolution, that was adopted with 93 votes in favour, 65 abstentions and 18 votes against, called for a “de-escalation, an early cessation of hostilities and a peaceful resolution of the war against Ukraine, marked by enormous destruction and human suffering, including among the civilian population, in line with the Charter of the United Nations and international law”.

India was among the 65 UN Member States that abstained on the resolution. As the resolution was adopted, the UNGA hall broke into applause with Member States welcoming the adoption of the text.

The resolution comes on the third anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres stressing that the war in Ukraine stands as a “grave threat” not only to the peace and security of Europe but also to the very foundations and core principles of the United Nations.

The US also tabled a brief rival resolution ‘The path to peace’ that mourns the tragic loss of life throughout the “Russian Federation-Ukraine” conflict. A draft amendment tabled by France sought to replace “the Russian Federation-Ukraine conflict” in the US-tabled text with “the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation”.

The resolution, as amended, was adopted with 93 votes in favour, 8 against and 73 abstentions. India abstained on the US-tabled resolution.

In proposing the American draft resolution, Ambassador Dorothy Shea, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim at the US Mission to the UN, said multiple UNGA resolutions have demanded that Russia withdraw its forces from Ukraine but those resolutions have failed to stop the war.

“It has now dragged on for far too long, and at far too terrible a cost to the people in Ukraine, in Russia, and beyond,” she said.

Shea said as the world marks the third anniversary of the conflict, the need is for a resolution “marking the commitment from all UN Member States to bring a durable end to the war” and added that the US draft resolution “makes this very point. Our draft implores a swift end to the conflict and further urges a lasting peace between Ukraine and Russia.”  The UNGA resolution by Ukraine reiterated the urgent need to end the war this year, and to redouble diplomatic efforts to reduce the risks of further escalation and achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine, consistent with the Charter, including its principles of sovereign equality and territorial integrity of States.

It recalled the need for full implementation of its relevant resolutions adopted in response to the aggression against Ukraine, in particular its demand that Russia immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders, and its demand for an immediate cessation of the hostilities by Russia against Ukraine, in particular of any attacks against civilians and civilian objects.

It emphasised the need to ensure accountability for the most serious crimes under international law committed on the territory of Ukraine through appropriate, fair and independent investigations and prosecutions at the national or international level, and ensure justice for all victims and the prevention of future crimes.

The resolution reiterated its call for the complete exchange of prisoners of war, the release of all unlawfully detained persons and the return of all internees and of civilians forcibly transferred and deported, including children and also reiterated its call for the immediate cessation of attacks against critical energy infrastructure, which increase the risk of a nuclear accident or incident.

Noting that more than 12,600 civilians have been killed and many more injured in the three years of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Guterres reaffirmed the “urgent need for a just, sustainable and comprehensive peace – one that fully upholds Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders, in accordance with the UN Charter, international law, and resolutions of the General Assembly”.

Declaring that “enough is enough”, Guterres said that after three years of death and destruction, “I once again call for urgent de-escalation and an immediate end to the hostilities.”