The resolution, supported by 94 of the assembly’s 193 members, said Russia, which invaded its neighboring country in February, “must bear the legal consequences of all its internationally illegal acts, including reparation for injury, including any damage caused by such acts”. The resolution recommends that member states, in cooperation with Ukraine, establish an international registry to record evidence and claims against Russia. The resolutions of the General Assembly are not binding, but have political weight. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called the resolution “important.” “Reparations that Russia will have to pay for what it has done are now part of the international legal reality,” Zelensky said in his nightly video address. Kiev’s UN ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya told the General Assembly before the vote that Russia has targeted everything from factories to residential buildings and hospitals. “Ukraine will have the daunting task of rebuilding the country and recovering from this war, but this recovery will never be complete without a sense of justice for the victims of the Russian war. It is time for Russia to be held accountable,” Kyslytsya said . The United Nations headquarters building is pictured with a UN logo in the Manhattan borough of New York, New York, U.S., March 1, 2022. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri Russia’s UN ambassador Vasily Nebenzia told the General Assembly ahead of the vote that provisions of the resolution were “legally void” as he urged countries to vote against it. “The West is trying to distract and exacerbate the conflict and plans to use Russian money for it,” Nebenzia said. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now vice-chairman of Russia’s Security Council, said on messaging app Telegram that “the Anglo-Saxons are clearly trying to put together a legal basis for the illegal seizure of Russian assets.” Fourteen countries voted against the resolution, including Russia, China and Iran, while 73 abstained, including Brazil, India and South Africa. Not all member states voted. In March, 141 members of the General Assembly voted to denounce the Russian invasion, and 143 in October condemned Moscow’s attempt to annex parts of Ukraine. Zelensky said on Saturday that Russian forces destroyed critical infrastructure in the strategic southern city of Kherson before fleeing. Moscow denies it deliberately targeted civilians, although the invasion has reduced Ukrainian cities to rubble and killed or injured thousands. “A broad international effort will be needed to support Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction in order to build a secure and prosperous future for the Ukrainian people,” Britain’s UN ambassador Barbara Woodward told the assembly. “But only one country, Russia, is responsible for the damage in Ukraine, and it is absolutely right, as this resolution states, that Russia should pay for that damage.” Report by Dafni Psaledakis and Doina Chiacu in WASHINGTON. Additional reporting by Oleksandr Kozhukhar in Kyiv and Lidia Kelly in Melbourne. edited by Grant McCool Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
