Russia-Ukraine conflict: UN General Assembly demands complete Russian troop withdrawal in resolution

The United Nations General Assembly conducted a rare emergency session this week in the midst of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. The majority of the countries voted in support of the resolution demanding that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin immediately withdraw all military forces from Ukraine.

141 out of 193 of the world’s nations voted in favor of a United Nations resolution demanding Russia “immediately, completely, and unconditionally” withdraw all its military forces out of Ukraine. The resolution was taken up Wednesday in a rare emergency session of the UN General Assembly, marking another rebuke towards Moscow.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the resolution to condemn Russia was “loud and clear.”

“End hostilities in Ukraine – now. Silence the guns – now,” said Guterres in a statement. “As bad as the situation is for the people in Ukraine right now, it threatens to get much, much worse. The ticking clock is a time bomb.”

Among the 35 countries that abstained from voting were China, India, and South Africa. Only five countries including Russia – Eritrea, North Korea, Syria, and Belarus, opposed. Russia’s ally Serbia was also among the countries that supported the resolution.

The resolution “deplores” Russia’s offensive on Ukraine, and condemns the decision made by Putin to put his nuclear forces on alert. While the resolutions by the UNGA are non-binding, there is political weight, with the latest resolution further isolating Russia from the rest of the world.

Nearly all the speakers at the General Assembly condemned the conflict. Ukraine’s ambassador to the UN Sergiy Kyslytsya said the resolution is “one of the building blocks to build a wall” to stop Russia’s offensive and urged countries to support the resolution ahead of the vote.

The West and many other countries have also moved to impose sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion and aggression on Ukraine. The US recently announced another set of sanctions that now target several Russian oligarchs and their families and individuals in Putin’s inner circle. This also includes Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

The sanctions include visa restrictions and seizure of assets, targeting 19 “oligarchs” and 47 of their family members, said the Biden administration.