UN adopts resolution demanding Russia immediately withdraw troops from Ukraine

Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky addressing the United Nations General Assembly (AP)

The UN General Assembly has approved a Ukrainian resolution demanding an immediate withdrawal of all Russian troops from Ukraine on the third anniversary of the invasion.

The vote in the 193-member world body, whose resolutions are not legally binding but are seen as a barometer of world opinion, was 93-18 with 65 abstentions.

That is lower than previous resolutions, which saw more than 140 nations condemn Russia’s aggression and demand a reversal of its annexation of four Ukrainian regions.

The European-backed Ukrainian resolution was approved ahead of a vote on a separate US proposal that calls for a swift end to the war but never mentions Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24 2022.