On Feb. 24, the United Nations Security Council and General Assembly held meetings to mark the third anniversary of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. What should have been a pro forma affair became a near fiasco after the U.S., which worked closely with Kyiv and European countries to condemn Russia at the UN in the Biden era, made a startling change of tack. The U.S. attempted to block a Ukrainian-European General Assembly resolution reaffirming Ukraine’s territorial integrity, and tabled an alternative resolution referring to the need for peace without citing any conditions. Ultimately, both passed, although the U.S. abstained on its own text after France led a push to add amendments referring to Ukraine’s rights under international law. Washington did, however, push through a slimline Security Council resolution citing the need for peace that China and Russia supported. European members of the council, including France and Britain, abstained.
The UN Between Decline and Renewal (Richard Gowan, Lawfare)
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