U.N. General Assembly Unlikely to Adopt Draft Resolution Condemning Russia

By Yasushi Kaneko / Yomiuri Shimbun Correspondent

17:13 JST, February 22, 2024

NEW YORK — The U.N. General Assembly is unlikely to adopt a draft resolution condemning Russia when it convenes on Friday to mark the two-year anniversary of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, according to U.N. diplomatic sources.

According to a U.N. diplomatic source, no draft resolution on the issue has been distributed this year, and that there has been no prior consultation about any drafts.

Resolutions to be voted on at the U.N. General Assembly are generally explained in advance by the submitting country, but this year, it is increasingly likely a draft will not be submitted.

“If the resolution is not adopted, it will lead to a decrease in the international community’s pressure on Russia,” another source said.

The possible lack of a submission may be from a dispersed interest in Ukraine, due to the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian territory of Gaza, where Israel and the Islamist organization Hamas continue to fight.

When the U.N. General Assembly held its emergency special session last year, one year after Russia’s aggression began, 141 out of 193 member states adopted the resolution, which included “the need to ensure accountability for the most serious crimes under international law committed in Ukraine through independent national or international investigations and prosecutions.”

Ukraine submitted the resolution by inviting countries to cosponsor the draft.