NewsGate Press Network

In a significant development on Thursday, 7th April 2022 at the United Nations General Assembly session – India abstained during voting Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council as suspended from the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) over its invasion of Ukraine.

The voting result of the resolution to remove Russia from UNHCR  was  – 93 countries supporting the resolution, while 58 countries, including India, abstained, and 24 countries voted against the resolution.

News agencies are reporting that Russia has described the move as an “unfriendly gesture” and said there will be consequences for bilateral ties, according to reports.

Because Russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and cannot be removed, suspending it from the UNHRC is seen as a significant way for the UN to show its disapproval of Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

The meeting marked the resumption of a special emergency session on the war in Ukraine and followed reports of violations committed by Russian forces.

This past weekend, disturbing photos emerged from the city of Bucha, a suburb of the capital, Kyiv, where hundreds of civilian bodies were found in the streets and in mass graves following Russia’s withdrawal from the area.

Prior to the vote, Ukrainian Ambassador Sergiy Kyslytsya urged countries to support the resolution.

“Bucha and dozens of other Ukrainian cities and villages, where thousands of peaceful residents have been killed, tortured, raped, abducted and robbed by the Russian Army, serve as an example of how dramatically far the Russian Federation has gone from its initial declarations in the human rights domain. That is why this case is unique and today’s response is obvious and self-explanatory,” he said.

Gennady Kuzmin, Deputy Russian Ambassador, called for countries to “vote against the attempt by western countries and their allies to destroy the existing human rights architecture.”