UN adopts resolution demanding Russia to withdraw troops from Ukraine

The UN General Assembly approved a Ukrainian resolution Monday demanding an immediate withdrawal of all Russian troops from Ukraine on the third anniversary of the invasion.

The vote in the 193-member world body, whose resolutions are not legally binding but are seen as a barometer of world opinion, was 93-18 with 65 abstentions. That's lower than previous resolutions, which saw over 140 nations condemn Russia's aggression and demand a reversal of its annexation of four Ukrainian regions. 

The European-backed Ukrainian resolution was approved ahead of a vote on a dueling US proposal that calls for a swift end to the war but never mentions Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Mariana Betsa said her country is exercising its inherent right to self-defense following Russia's invasion, which violates the UN Charter's requirement that countries respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other nations.

As we mark three years of this devastation Russia's full invasion against Ukraine we call on all nations to stand firm and to take the side of the Charter, the side of humanity and the side of just and lasting peace, peace through strength, she said.

US deputy ambassador Dorothy Shea, meanwhile, said multiple previous UN resolutions condemning Russia and demanding the withdrawal of Russian troops have failed to stop the war, which has now dragged on for far too long and at far too terrible a cost to the people in Ukraine and Russia and beyond.

What we need is a resolution marking the commitment from all UN member states to bring a durable end to the war, Shea said. The draft resolution submitted by the United States makes this very point.