India votes against Russia

 

India has voted against Russia for the first time since the start of the Ukraine war.  The vote was held in the UN Security Council last Wednesday.  After this vote, the question has been raised whether India's view on the Ukraine issue has changed a little or not.  News from PTI.

 On February 24, Russia launched an attack on Ukraine.  The United Nations has voted several times before to condemn or impose sanctions on Russia.  But each time Delhi abstained from voting.  India has to be disappointed by the Western countries including the United States.  The United States and its allies have imposed economic sanctions on Russia due to the attack on Ukraine.  But India has not criticized Russia for its aggression against Ukraine.  New Delhi has repeatedly urged Russia and Ukraine to resolve the crisis through diplomatic dialogue.

India is currently a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for a two-year term.  That period will end in December this year.  Wednesday was the 31st anniversary of Ukraine's independence.  On that day it was six months since the Russia-Ukraine war.  On that day, a meeting of the United Nations Security Council was organized to stop the conflict.  At the start of the meeting, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily A. Nebenzia requested a formal vote expressing concern and opposition to the virtual participation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Security Council meeting.

 After his speech, Freit Hoxha, Ambassador of Albania, gave a speech.  Zelensky's participation was then confirmed by a Security Council vote.  13 countries, including India, voted in favor of Zelensky's participation in the vote.  Naturally, Russia voted against, but the country's ally China abstained.  In addition to Russia and China, the permanent members of the Security Council are the United States, the United Kingdom and France.

 During the meeting, Nebenzia argued that Russia was not opposed to Zelensky's participation in the Security Council meeting.  Because, his wife should be present in such a meeting.  Security Council meetings were held virtually during the Corona pandemic.  But after the corona situation normalized, the council has now returned to the previous rules.

The ambassador of Albania said that the war is going on in Ukraine.  The situation in the country requires the President to be there.  For this situation, he supports Zelensky joining the video conference.  He also said to support other members.

 Nebenzia expressed regret and said that the members of the Security Council spoke against following the rules.  We understand the logic of Western supporters of Kiev.

 In his speech, Zelensky called on Russia to be held accountable for its aggression against Ukraine.  "If Moscow is not stopped now, all the murderers in Russia will inevitably attack other countries," he said.  The future of the world will be decided on the territory of Ukraine.  Our freedom is your security.

Zelensky alleged that Russia had brought the world to the brink of a nuclear disaster by turning the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant into a war zone.  He accused Russia of nuclear blackmail.  He called for the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from there.

 UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed deep concern over the situation at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, saying the warning lights are on.  He also expressed concern over violations of international humanitarian law.

 US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas Greenfield complained that Russia's goals were as clear as ever.  Their goal is to dismantle Ukraine as a geopolitical entity and erase it from the world map.