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This Thursday, April 7th, the UN general assembly voted to suspend Russia from the human rights council over allegations that Russian soldiers have committed human rights violations in Ukraine that the United States and Ukraine have called war crimes.
American ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield initially launched the campaign to have Russia suspended after images of dead Ukrainian images emerged after the Russians retreated from Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital. These photos have sparked global outrage and spawned calls for stricter sanctions against Russia. Russia has denied any responsibility for these actions.
Thomas-Greenfield called the vote to suspend Russia a “historic moment” and said that Russia must be held accountable “for this unprovoked, unjust, unconscionable war.”
What makes this suspension such a historical moment is because Russia is the second ever country to ever be suspended from the human rights council, the first being Libya in 2011. Furthermore, this is the first time that a permanent member of the security council has been suspended.
Gennady Kuzmin, Russia’s deputy ambassador, said after the vote that Russia had already withdrawn from the council before the general assembly could pass the vote and suspend Russia. By withdrawing, in apparent expectation of the result of the vote, Russia can still have observer status at the human rights council.
Regarding the vote on the US proposed resolution, 93 countries voted for, 24 voted against, and 58 voted to abstain, much lower than previous resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Ukraine, with these resolutions each getting approval by at least 140 countries.
When countries who didn’t vote in favor of the resolution were asked to explain, some called the resolution premature, stating that investigations regarding Russian war crimes are still underway, while others stated that this resolution showcases “American and European geopolitical agendas, Western hypocrisy, and selective outrage over human rights.”
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