TheCable

Nigeria and 140 other countries have asked Russia to immediately withdraw its troops from Ukraine, one year after the war started.

NAN reports that at the United Nations (UN) general assembly session on Thursday, Ukraine got strong backing in a non-binding vote that saw 141 of the 193 member states in support.

Seven members opposed and 32, including China and India, were absent.

António Guterres, UN secretary-general, said the one-year mark stands as a “grim milestone,” adding that the impact is felt far beyond Ukraine.

“While prospects may look bleak today, we know that genuine, lasting peace must be based on the UN Charter and international law,” Guterres said.

“The longer the fighting continues, the more difficult this work will be. We don’t have a moment to lose.”

The UN chief said the call for peace was without an alternative, adding that the preservation of the UN charter must be the common interest of all member states.

The vote came hours after Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, asked the international community to choose “between good and evil”.

The UN called for a cessation of hostilities and demanded “that the Russian Federation immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders”.

Csaba Kőrösi, UN general assembly president, said the world body and the international community have been consistent and vocal in calls to end the war for almost a year.

“Let this anniversary and the anguish of millions before our eyes over the last year serve as a reminder to all of us here in this hall that military solutions will not end this war,” he said.

“Too many lives, livelihoods, families and communities have been lost. Russia can end its aggression and the war it has unleashed. Russia must end this hell of bloodshed.”