India abstains from procedural vote ahead of discussion on Ukraine at UN Security Council
India Today
Ten member states voted in favour of and two - Russia and China - against the discussion on Ukraine at the United Nations Security Council.
India on Monday abstained from the procedural vote at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) ahead of a meeting to discuss the situation on the Ukraine border.
Ten member states, namely the US, UK, France, UAE, Ghana, Albania, Norway, Brazil, Mexico and Ireland, voted in favour of taking up the Ukraine issue. On the other hand, only two member states - Russia and China - voted against it.
Meanwhile, three member states - India, Gabon and Kenya - abstained from the vote.
The Security Council only required nine votes in favour to go ahead with the discussion.
India's representative to the UNSC, in a statement, said, "We have been closely following the evolving developments relating to Ukraine, including through ongoing high-level security talks between Russia and the United States, as well as under the Normandy format in Paris.
"India's interest is in finding a solution that can provide for immediate de- escalation of tensions taking into account the legitimate security interests of all countries and aimed towards securing long term peace and stability in the region and beyond. We have also been in touch with all concerned parties. It is our considered view that the issue can only be resolved through diplomatic dialogue," the statement went on to add.
Meanwhile, Russia accused the United States of trying to "create hysteria" over the situation on Ukraine's borders. US President Joe Biden responded by warning Russia of "severe consequences" should Moscow "walk away from diplomacy".
