U.N. CALLS FOR PEACE DEAL FOR UKRAINE

The U.N. General Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution calling for a lasting peace in Ukraine and reiterating its demand for Russia to withdraw its troops and halt the conflict, in a nonbinding vote on the eve of the anniversary of Moscow’s invasion.

The resolution, introduced by Ukraine during a special session of the assembly that lasted two days, passed 141-7, with 32 abstentions.

The resolution demonstrated continued support for Ukraine and Russia’s isolation on the world stage even as many countries grapple with the far-reaching consequences of the war on their own populations, with the prices of energy and food soaring.

Among the countries that abstained were Russia’s allies China, Iran and India. Among the few countries siding with Russia in voting no were Belarus, Eritrea, Nicaragua, North Korea, Mali and Syria. Two amendments offered by Belarus to alter the resolution in favor of Russia were rejected.

“In this war there is no equal sides; there is an aggressor and a victim,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told the assembly Wednesday when he introduced the resolution. “We have no choice but to keep fighting for our survival.”

Russia called the resolution “Russophobic,” and its ambassador to the United Nations, Vassily Nebenzia, told the assembly Wednesday that the idea of defeating “a nuclear state” was a fantasy.

Resolutions passed by the General Assembly are not legally binding, but they carry symbolic and political weight. This was the third one adopted by the assembly in relation to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a year ago. The U.N. Security Council has been unable to bring stronger action because Russia has veto power against any resolutions brought against it.

The resolution makes it clear that a peace deal would not recognize any territorial gains by the use or threat of force. It condemned Russia’s human rights violations against civilians and its attacks on civilian infrastructure that have ruined cities across Ukraine.

Some of the countries that abstained or voted against the resolutions have said that the peace efforts should address the security concerns of both sides. Supporters of the resolution say “both siding” the conflict is an attempt to falsely equate the aggressor and the victim.

PETROS GIANNAKOURIS AP Olesia Marchenko and her daughter, Uliana, sit next to the grave of her husband, Ihor, at the military cemetery in Lviv, Ukraine, on Thursday, as family members gathered for a “lights of memory” event to honor those who have died fighting Russia’s invasion.