India abstains from voting against Russia at UN General Assembly
Mar 02, 2022
New York [US], March 2 : India abstained from voting against Russia at United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday at the 11th emergency special session and fourth plenary meeting on the ongoing Russian military operation in Ukraine.
Voting results displayed on screens at the UN General Assembly showed that 141 nations voted in favour of the move and five nations were against it, with 35 countries abstained.
The UNGA overwhelmingly voted to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine. As the results were placed on the screen in the chamber, a rare standing ovation occurred, UNGA statement said.
However, Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said that Moscow is not carrying out strikes on civilians and civilian facilities.
Speaking at UN General Assembly (UNGA) emergency session on Wednesday, the Russian envoy said that a peaceful scenario of Ukraine could happen if the radicals were concerned about preserving lives of civilians rather than hiding behind them.
"We are not carrying out strikes on civilian facilities and civilians. A peaceful scenario of Ukraine could happen if the radicals concerned about preserving civilian lives rather than hiding behind them," Vassily Nebenzia today.
Earlier on Sunday (local time), India abstained from voting on a resolution to call for a special emergency session of the UNGA on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. This came two days after India abstained from voting on the UNSC resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine, along with China and the UAE.
Justifying India's stand at UN General Assembly, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla has said that it was based "on certain careful considerations" and taken "in the best interests" of the country.
"In United Nations, we take positions that are based on certain careful considerations and certainly, we do regard the merits of each and every case that comes before us...take decisions in our best interest," Shringla said while replying to India's decision to abstain from voting on a resolution to call for a special emergency session of the UN General Assembly on the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
