by Simon Lewis and Timothy Gardner
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Russia on Friday vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution tabled by the United States and Albania condemning Moscow’s annexation of four Ukrainian regions.
China, another permanent member of the Council, abstained.
The resolution called on member states not to recognize these annexations and to call on Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine.
US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield called the Russian move a “flagrant violation of international law”.
Ten countries voted in favor of the text. Apart from China, Gabon, India and Brazil abstained.
The Russian ambassador Vassili Nebenzia, the only one to raise his hand to vote against the resolution, argued that the inhabitants of the regions had made the choice to join Russia by referendum, while Kyiv and Westerners denounce sham voting. “There will be no turning back as this draft resolution would try to impose,” he said.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he plans to submit the text to the UN General Assembly, which has already overwhelmingly condemned Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine.
(French version Jean-Stéphane Brosse)
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