13 October 2022 09:06 am
Sri Lanka on Thursday abstained as the UN General Assembly voted to adopt a resolution condemning Russia's "attempted illegal annexations" of the four Ukrainian regions following a “referendum”.
The resolution, which declared that “attempted illegal annexation” of the regions of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia in Ukraine have no validity under international law, was adopted by a 143-5 vote in the 193-member General Assembly. Thirty-five countries, including Sri Lanka, India, China and Pakistan abstained.
The UNSC could not adopt the resolution as Russia — a permanent member of the UN Security Council — vetoed it.
In an explanation of the country’s vote, India’s permanent representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj, said the country’s decision to abstain was “consistent with our well-thought-out national position”. There are also “other pressing issues” at play and some of them have not been adequately addressed in the resolution, she said.
“My prime minister has said unequivocally that this cannot be an era of war. With this firm resolve to strive for a peaceful solution through dialogue and diplomacy, India has decided to abstain,” she said, referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s message to Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting in Samarkand on September 16.