Russia, as expected, vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on Friday that \u201cdeplores in the strongest terms\u201d the country\u2019s \u201caggression\u201d against Ukraine and demanded the immediate withdrawal of its troops.<\/P>
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Eleven of the council\u2019s 15 members voted for the motion, which was co-written by the United States and Albania.<\/P>
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China, India and the UAE abstained.<\/P>
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The resolution was always doomed to fail because of Moscow\u2019s veto power as a permanent member of the council.<\/P>
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Still, the debate offered the chamber an important opportunity to voice its condemnation of President Vladimir Putin\u2019s decision to launch a full-scale offensive against Russia\u2019s neighbor.<\/P>
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\u201cLet me make one thing clear,\u201d US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield said after the vote. \u201cRussia, you can veto this resolution, but you cannot veto our voices, you cannot veto the truth, you cannot veto our principles, you cannot veto the Ukrainian people.\u201d<\/P>
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The wording of the draft text put before the Security Council was watered down in the hours before the vote to gain more support.<\/P>
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The word \u201ccondemns\u201d was replaced by \u201cdeplores\u201d and a reference to Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which allows members to take military action to restore peace, was deleted.<\/P>
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The resolution reaffirmed the sovereignty of Ukraine and called for Russia to \u201cimmediately cease its use of force against Ukraine.\u201d<\/P>
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Ultimately, almost 70 countries co-sponsored the resolution.<\/P>
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Russia, which currently holds the rotating Security Council presidency, will likely face another vote on a similar resolution before the wider UN General Assembly which could be passed by a substantial margin, although it would be non-binding.<\/P>
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\u201cMake no mistake, Russia is isolated. It has no support for the invasion of Ukraine,\u201d said Britain\u2019s ambassador to the UN, Barbara Woodward.<\/P>
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Before the vote, Thomas-Greenfield described the attack as \u201cso bold, so brazen, that it threatens our international system as we know it.<\/P>
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\u201cWe have a solemn obligation to not look away \u2026 At the very minimum, we have an obligation to object,\u201d she said.<\/P>
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\u201cVote yes if you believe Russia should be held to account for its actions. Vote no or abstain if you do not uphold the charter and align yourselves with the aggressive and unprovoked actions of Russia.<\/P>
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\u201cJust as Russia had a choice. So do you,\u201d she pleaded.<\/P>
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Russia, which currently holds the rotating Security Council presidency, will likely face another vote on a similar resolution before the wider UN General Assembly which is formed of all 193 member countries.<\/P>
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Moscow does not have a veto there and the resolution could be passed by a substantial margin, although it would be non-binding.<\/P>
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The General Assembly held a similar vote in 2014 condemning Russia\u2019s seizure of Crimea, which obtained 100 votes in support.<\/P>
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Moscow had earlier vetoed a Security Council resolution condemning its actions in Crimea. Thirteen countries supported it with China abstaining.<\/P>
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Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK<\/P>
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Russia, as expected, vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on Friday that \u201cdeplores in the strongest terms\u201d the country\u2019s \u201caggression\u201d against Ukraine and demanded the immediate withdrawal of its troops.Eleven of the council\u2019s 15 members voted for th…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n