NEW YORK
\nPakistan, along with 72 other countries, abstained when the UN General Assembly Monday voted to adopt a resolution calling for Russia to be held accountable for international law violations relating to the war in Ukraine, including by paying war reparations.
\nSponsored by 57 countries, the resolution garnered in the 193-member Assembly 94 votes in favour to 14 against, including Russia, China, Cuba, Mali and Ethiopia. It was the lowest level of support for any of the five resolutions about Ukraine that the General Assembly had passed since Russia invaded neighbouring Ukraine on Feb. 24.
\nFurther, the resolution recommended the establishment of an international mechanism for reparation for damage, loss or injury arising from the Russian\u2019s wrongful acts. Speaking in explanation of his vote, Pakistani delegate Gul Qaiser said while Pakistan supports the establishment of a claims commission, any such mechanism must be based on sound legal foundations.
\nBut, he said the resolution failed to address key legal requirements in a comprehensive manner. Qaiser, first secretary in the Pakistan Mission to the UN, also said it would be \u201cunprecedented\u201d to establish the proposed mechanism that is neither managed by nor accountable to any of the UN principal organs, including the Assembly.
\nNoting that many of the co-sponsors of the draft resolution had consistently opposed any discussion on such an international mechanism for seeking reparations for slavery and colonialism, the Pakistani delegate said that double standards in application of international law were counter productive.
\n\u201cUniversal and consistent adherence to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter is imperative, not only to ensure the credibility and legitimacy of the UN system, but also to strengthen accountability and justice for serious violations of international law,\u201d Qaiser said.
\nIrrespective of the origin of the conflict, he added, the highest priority at this moment is the immediate cessation of hostilities and the resumption of a dialogue \u2013 through direct negotiations, mediation or other peaceful means \u2013 to resolve the conflict and restore peace and security in Ukraine.
\nIn presenting the resolution to the Assembly, Ukrainian Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya insisted that Russia must be held accountable for its violations of international law.
\n\u201cSeventy-seven years ago, the Soviet Union demanded and received reparations, calling it a moral right of a country that has suffered war and occupation,\u201d he said. \u201cToday, Russia, who claims to be the successor of the 20th century\u2019s tyranny, is doing everything it can to avoid paying the price for its own war and occupation, trying to escape accountability for the crimes it is committing.\u201d
\nKyslytsya pointed out that Russia also supported the creation of the UN Compensation Commission (UNCC), established in 1991 following Iraq\u2019s invasion and occupation of Kuwait. The Commission completed its mandate in February, he reported, having paid out over $52 billion in reparations to victims.
\nThe Ambassador outlined the impact of the Russian war on Ukraine ,including bombings targeting residential buildings and infrastructure, the demolition of nearly half of the power grid and utilities, massive displacement, and atrocities such as murder, rape, torture and forced deportations.
\n\u201cThis proposal is not about Russia alone. It will work for the benefit of all those who are being threatened now or might be threatened later by use of force,\u201d he said. Speaking before the vote, Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya characterized the draft resolution as \u201ca classic example\u201d of a narrow group of States acting not on the basis of international law, but rather trying to consecrate something that is illegal.
\nHe said countries backing the resolution were attempting to position the General Assembly as a judicial body, which it is not. \u201cThese countries boast about how committed they are to the rule of law, but at the same time, they are flouting its very semblance,\u201d he added, speaking in Russian.
\nNebenzya said the proposed reparations mechanism will be created by a group of countries that will decide how it functions. \u201cThe UN will play no role in this process because the proposed mechanism is suggested to be created outside of the UN, and no one has any plans to account to the General Assembly for its activity,\u201d he added.
\nFurthermore, the Russian envoy said he had \u201cno doubt\u201d that the funding will come from frozen Russian assets, which total billions. Western countries have long wanted to unfreeze these assets, he said, not to return them to their owner, or to spend them on helping Ukraine, \u201cbut rather so as to fund their own constantly growing weapons supplies to Kyiv, and covering the debts for the weapons already supplied.\u201d
\nThe General Assembly emergency special session began on 28 February, or just days after the start of the war in Ukraine. This marks only the 11th time such a meeting has been held since 1950, in line with a resolution widely known as \u2018Uniting for Peace\u2019.
\nResolution 377A(V) gives the General Assembly power to take up matters of international peace and security when the Security Council is unable to act due to unanimity among its five permanent members \u2013 China, France, the United Kingdom, the United States and Russia \u2013 who have the power of veto.
\nThe current special session was convened after the Council voted in favour of the General Assembly meeting following Russia\u2019s veto of a resolution that would have deplored the assault on Ukraine.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NEW YORK Pakistan, along with 72 other countries, abstained when the UN General Assembly Monday voted to adopt a resolution calling for Russia to be held accountable for international law violations relating to the war in Ukraine, including by paying war reparations. Sponsored by 57 countries, the resolution garnered in the 193-member Assembly 94 votes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":295452,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-295419","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n