Portugal will vote in favor of a resolution that will be voted on in the General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) and that seeks to condemn the annexation of Ukrainian territories by Russia, the Portuguese ambassador, Ana Paula Zacarias, said on Wednesday.
The emergency meeting of the General Assembly to address the annexation of Ukrainian territories by Russia resumed in the morning (local time) at the headquarters of the international organization in New York with the positions of the diplomats, at which time the representative Portuguese Permanent Representative to the UN appealed to the 193 Member States that voted in favor of the resolution.
“Portugal strongly condemns the so-called referendums organized by Russia and its subsequent annexation of the Ukrainian territories of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia. This is the largest annexation since the Second World War and constitutes another flagrant violation of international law and the principles enshrined in the UN Charter”, defended Ana Paula Zacarias.
“Portugal considers these referendums and annexations illegal, null and void and does not recognize their political and legal effects. We reaffirm our support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence within its internationally recognized borders and Ukraine’s right to self-defense against to ongoing foreign aggression,” added the diplomat.
In this sense, the Portuguese ambassador announced that Portugal co-sponsored the resolution and will vote in favor of it.
“We strongly recommend to others [Estados-membros] do the same,” appealed the former Secretary of State for European Affairs.
“We must continue to collectively confront this situation to preserve an international order. This is the time to act. (…) The time to respect the principles of peace and security that are the basis of this organization”, he stressed.
Ana Paula Zacarias also called for the renewal of the agreement for the export of cereals from Ukraine, signed on July 22 under the auspices of the UN.
In addition to demanding that Russia reverse the annexation of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia, the resolution backed by the West – and which will be voted on at the end of the declarations of the diplomatic corps present at the meeting – declares that Moscow’s actions violate the sovereignty . and the territorial integrity of Ukraine and are “inconsistent” with the principles of the UN Charter.
The proposed resolution says that the annexations also “have no validity under international law and do not form the basis for any alteration of the status of these regions of Ukraine.”
The document demands that Russia “immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders” to allow for the peaceful resolution of the conflict, through “political dialogue, negotiations, mediation and other peaceful means”. .
Russia wanted the vote to be secret, hoping to get more support from some of the 193 member states if the votes were not public. However, the General Assembly decided that the vote will take place publicly.
The 193 member states of the UN began the debate on this issue on Monday and, after a recess on Tuesday, they are expected to conclude it today, thus proceeding to the vote.
In recent days, the European Union (EU) and the United States have been trying to get as much support as possible for the draft resolution, in an attempt to make clear Russia’s isolation on the international stage.
This meeting follows the veto imposed by Moscow on a resolution voted on September 30 in the UN Security Council, which condemned the referendums organized in the east and south of Ukraine and its subsequent annexation by the Russian Federation.
In the General Assembly, no country has veto power, but the body’s resolutions carry less weight than those of the Security Council.
Source: TSF
