India voted against Russia for the first time on Wednesday in a “procedural vote” at the UN Security Council on Ukraine, when the tough 15-member UN framework invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to speak at a meeting by videoconference.
This is the first time India has voted against Russia on the Ukraine issue, after the Russian military’s action began in February. So far, New Delhi has abstained from the UN Security Council on Ukraine, much to the chagrin of US-led Western powers. .
Western nations, in addition to the United States, have imposed economic and other sanctions on Russia as a result of the aggression.
India has not criticized Russia for its aggression against Ukraine. New Delhi has continuously called on the Russian and Ukrainian sides to resume the path of international relations and dialogue, and has also expressed all diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the standoff between the two countries. .
India is lately a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for a two-year term, which ends in December.
On Wednesday, the UNSC held an assembly to take stock of the six-month standoff on the anniversary of Ukraine’s independence.
At the beginning of the assembly, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Vassily A Nebenzia, requested a procedural vote related to the Ukrainian president’s participation in the assembly via videoconference.
Following his statements and those of Ferit Hoxha of Albania, the Council invited Zelensky to participate in the assembly via videoconference by a vote of thirteen in favour. Russia voted against such an invitation, while China abstained.
Nebenzia insisted that Russia is not opposed to Zelensky’s participation, but such participation will have to be face-to-face. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Council began working virtually, but those meetings were casual and, after the peak of the pandemic, the Council returned. to the provisional rules of procedure, he explained.
Reiterating that his country’s objection in particular is similar to the president’s participation via videoconference, he called for a procedural vote on this issue, with which India and 12 other countries did agree, and supported Zelensky to address the Council via videoconference.
Hoxha of Albania argued that Ukraine is at war and that the scenario in that country demands that the president be there. Because of this exclusive scenario, he supported Zelensky’s participation video conference and suggested other members do the same.
Nebenzia regretted that the members of the Council had spoken out against compliance with the agency’s rules. “We can follow the logic of Kyiv’s Western donors,” he said, expressing sadness that other members have contributed to the erosion of the Council’s very foundations. and internships.
Soon after, Zelensky, in his statements via videoconference, called on the Russian Federation to be held accountable for its crimes of aggression against Ukraine. “If Moscow is arrested now, all those Russian killers will inevitably end up in other countries. “he said.
“It is on the territory of Ukraine where the long term of the global will be decided,” he added. “Our independence is your security,” he told the United Nations Security Council.
Zelensky alleged that Russia had brought the world to the brink of nuclear disaster by turning the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant into a war zone. The plant has six reactors, only one exploded at Chernothroughl, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) must recover the permanent stage as soon as possible, he said.
The Ukrainian president called on Russia to avoid its “nuclear blackmail” and withdraw from the plant.
U. N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was very concerned about the scenario in and around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, stressing that “the warning lights are flashing. “
Any action that could endanger the physical integrity, protection or safety of the plant is unacceptable, and any further escalation of the scenario can lead to self-destruction, he said and asked to ensure the protection of the plant, for the installation. be restored as a purely civilian infrastructure and have the IAEA carry out a project as soon as possible.
Guterres also expressed fear over alleged violations of humanitarian law.
U. S. Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas Greenfield said: “Russia’s purpose is clearer than ever: to dismantle Ukraine as a geopolitical entity and wipe it off the world map.
“Their disinformation campaigns are militarized to prepare for further attempts to annex Ukrainian territory,” he said.
However, the foreign network will never recognize Russia to replace Ukraine’s borders by force, he told the UN Security Council.
Noting that Ukraine has an impeccable record of protecting and safety the nuclear force at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear force plant, he said the Russian Federation attacked and took the site recklessly by force, risking a nuclear disaster.
The US envoy expressed fear over Moscow’s “so-called detection operation”, which consists of the systematic and forced deportation of Ukrainian civilians to remote areas of the Russian Federation.
Envoys from France, Ireland, Norway, Gabon, Ghana, Mexico, China and the United Kingdom, as well as the European Union as observers, also addressed the occasion.
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Ukraine celebrated its Independence Day on Wednesday, which has also marked exactly six months since the start of the Russian army’s offensive against the country on Feb. 24.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed. )
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