U.S. sides with Russia against UN resolution condemning Russian aggression in Ukraine
The United States, alongside Russia, North Korea, Iran, and 14 other Moscow-aligned countries, voted against a UN resolution on February 24 that condemned Russian aggression in Ukraine and called for the return of Ukrainian territory.
The resolution, which was sponsored by Ukrainian representatives, passed overwhelmingly in the UN General Assembly, despite the opposition.
Trump’s administration broke away from its European allies, refusing to assign blame to Russia for its invasion of Ukraine during three U.N. votes that aimed to bring an end to the ongoing war.
This divide between the U.S. and Europe follows Trump’s recent decision to initiate direct negotiations with Russia on ending the war, much to the dismay of Ukraine and its European supporters, who were excluded from the preliminary talks last week.
In the U.N. General Assembly, the U.S. joined Russia in voting against a European-backed Ukrainian resolution that specifically called out Moscow’s aggression and demanded the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine.
The resolution was passed with 93 votes in favour, 18 votes against, and 65 abstentions, signalling a slight decrease in global support for Ukraine compared to earlier votes, where over 140 nations condemned Russia’s actions.
The U.S. then abstained from voting on its own resolution after European countries led by France succeeded in amending the text to explicitly call out Russia as the aggressor in the conflict. The U.S. resolution, which acknowledged the tragic loss of life and urged an end to the war, did not directly assign blame to Moscow.
Trump has also accused Kyiv of initiating the war and warned that urgent negotiations were needed to avoid further escalation.
