UN to vote on blaming Russia for Ukraine humanitarian crisis

The UN General Assembly votes Thursday on a resolution backed by over 90 countries that blames Russia for the escalating humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and demands an immediate halt to hostilities, especially attacks on civilians and their homes, schools and hospitals.

Russia has denounced the resolution as "anti-Russian" and accuses its supporters of not really being concerned about the humanitarian situation on the ground, saying they want to politicize aid.

The vote follows the Security Council's overwhelming defeat on Wednesday of a Russian resolution that would have acknowledged Ukraine's growing humanitarian needs — but without mentioning Russia's attack that has left millions of Ukrainians in desperate need of food, water and shelter.

The council acted few hours after the General Assembly started considering a separate resolution titled "Humanitarian consequences of the aggression against Ukraine," which was drafted by Ukraine and two dozen other countries from all parts of the world. There were over 70 scheduled speakers and only 62 were able to deliver their remarks, so the final speeches and vote were postponed until Thursday.

The assembly will also consider a rival South African resolution, which doesn't mention Russia and is similar to the Russian resolution rejected by the Security Council.

The vote on the Russian resolution reflected Moscow's failure to get widespread backing for its military offensive in Ukraine, which marks its one-month anniversary Thursday.

To be adopted, Russia needed a minimum of nine "yes" votes in the 15-member Security Council and no veto by one of the four other permanent members — the US, Britain, France and China. But Russia got support only from its ally China, with the 13 other council members abstaining.

Britain's UN ambassador, Barbara Woodward, called Russia's draft "a cynical effort to exploit the crisis which they have caused" and told reporters that "Russia has consistently misplayed its hand here, and seriously underestimated the consequences of what it's done and the international perception of what it's done."

Before and after the vote, Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia and US Ambassador Linda Thomas Greenfield argued about Russia's offensive and its decision to even draft a humanitarian resolution.

Nebenzia told the council that Russia's resolution, like other humanitarian resolution, "is not politicized."

Thomas-Greenfield countered that Russia was "attempting to use this council to provide cover for its brutal actions."

"Russia does not care about the deteriorating humanitarian conditions," she said. "If they cared, they would stop fighting. Russia is the aggressor, the attacker, the invader, the sole party in Ukraine engaged in a campaign of brutality against the people of Ukraine, and they want us to pass a resolution that does not acknowledge their culpability."

China's vote Wednesday marked the first time it supported a Russian draft on Ukraine since the February 24 attack. It abstained on a March 2 General Assembly resolution demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities and withdrawal of all Russian forces from its smaller neighbour.

Chinese Ambassador Zhang Jun said China's support for the resolution was to stress its call for the international community "to place high importance to the humanitarian situation in Ukraine" and for the parties to protect the safety of civilians.

Russia introduced its resolution on March 15. A day earlier, France and Mexico decided to move their proposed humanitarian resolution blaming the Russian attack for the humanitarian crisis out of the Security Council, where it faced a Russian veto, to the 193-member General Assembly where there are no vetoes.

Unlike Security Council resolutions, General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, but they do have clout in reflecting international opinion.

Throughout Wednesday, the assembly heard speeches starting with Ukrainian Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsy, who urged all nations to vote for the resolution on the humanitarian consequences of Russia's military assault. He said this would send a powerful message aimed at helping people caught in the conflict and ending Moscow's military action.

Nebenzia told the assembly that by considering the Ukraine-backed resolution, it was engaging in "another political anti-Russian show, set this time in an allegedly humanitarian context."

He warned that adoption of that draft "will make a resolution to the situation in Ukraine more difficult" because it will likely embolden Ukrainian negotiators to maintain their "current unrealistic position" and not tackle the root causes of Russia's military action.

Russian authorities maintain they did not start the war and have repeatedly and falsely decried reports of Russian military setbacks or civilian deaths in Ukraine as fake news. State media outlets and government officials insist Russian troops target only military facilities.