India abstained from voting on several resolutions and amendments related to Ukraine at the United Nations General Assembly, where the United States broke ranks with its Western allies and sided with Russia on certain issues, reflecting the evolving global alignments under President Donald Trump.
Marking the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Western nations successfully passed two resolutions naming Moscow as the aggressor. However, in an unusual turn of events, the US joined Russia in voting against a resolution put forward by Ukraine and its Western allies condemning the invasion, while China chose to abstain.
The resolution was adopted with 93 votes in favor, 18 against, and 65 abstentions. The support was notably lower than the 141 votes a similar resolution had received in 2023, on which India had also abstained.
A Washington-backed resolution that initially did not name Russia as the invader was amended at the initiative of Western nations, led by France’s Permanent Representative Nicolas De Riviere, to explicitly label Moscow as the aggressor. This amendment was introduced while French President Emmanuel Macron was in Washington to meet Trump. Dissatisfied with the change, the US abstained from voting on its own proposal after the amendments were adopted.
The US, currently engaged in direct discussions with Russia to negotiate a peace deal for Ukraine, viewed the condemnation of Moscow as detrimental to its diplomatic efforts. Trump had spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and US representatives had met with Russian officials in Riyadh to explore avenues for ending the war, which began on February 24, 2022, causing extensive devastation in Ukraine and impacting Russia as well.
Defending the decision not to assign blame, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the resolution as “a simple, historic resolution” aimed at “charting a path to peace.” Acting US Permanent Representative Dorothy Shea reiterated this stance at the Assembly, stating that previous resolutions condemning Russia had “failed to stop the war.” She emphasized that the US resolution was designed to “look forward, not backward,” calling the moment “a moment of truth — a historic moment.” Shea added, “This has never been about Ukraine,” asserting that the resolution sought to address the broader global impact of the conflict.
Meanwhile, a Russia-sponsored amendment to Ukraine’s resolution, which sought to include references to the “root causes” of the conflict, failed to pass. The amendment received only 31 votes in favor, with 71 against and 59 abstentions, including the US. Conversely, the France-sponsored amendments to the US resolution, which invoked the UN Charter and condemned Russia’s invasion, were adopted despite negative votes from both Washington and Moscow.
— IANS
