UN resolution on Ukraine sends ‘necessary signal’, says UAE envoy

Fighting in Ukraine has reached a ‘dangerous inflection point’, says UAE ambassador Lana Nusseibeh

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UAE diplomat Lana Nusseibeh on Wednesday said an overwhelmingly supported resolution of the UN General Assembly against Russian aggression in Ukraine sent a “necessary signal”.

Ms Nusseibeh addressed the 193-nation assembly after the UAE and 140 other countries voted for a resolution against Russia’s invasion of its neighbour. Five nations voted against and 35 abstained.

“Right now, we recognise that this resolution adopted here today is a necessary signal of where we need to be going,” said Ms Nusseibeh, the UAE’s ambassador to the UN.

“Resigning ourselves to a cycle of perpetual violence and sanctions that only adds to the suffering of civilians diminishes us all.”

The resolution required support from two thirds of the assembly to pass. Diplomats stood and applauded after the vote.

The document condemns Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and its recognition of pro-Moscow breakaway regions. It also calls on the Kremlin to withdraw its troops from its neighbour.

Ms Nusseibeh said fighting in Ukraine had reached a “dangerous inflection point”.

“The humanitarian situation is worsening by the day,” she said in New York.

“We have seen reports of rapidly growing civilian casualties and massive displacement, the extent of which Europe has not experienced in decades.”

The UAE's support of the General Assembly resolution comes after it abstained from a Security Council vote last week.

Ms Nusseibeh said on Tuesday that the UAE would be “flexible” in its diplomacy.

“This is not a one-position approach,” she said in regard to the Ukraine crisis.