India skips vote on Ukraine resolutions, as US faces setback in UNGA

Amid high drama at the UN over the 2 resolutions that were brought in the UN General Assembly on the third anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war – one by the US and other by Ukraine and Europe – India abstained from voting on both. Both resolutions were adopted with 93 votes in favour, as EU members seemed to prevail over the Americans in mustering support from the 193-member body for comprehensive peace and for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The voting for the US effort, which sought a swift end to the conflict, was more dramatic as the US itself abstained from voting on a resolution it had sponsored. This was because the European countries managed to successfully introduce amendments in the text. India, which maintains that it is not neutral but on the side of peace, was expected to vote in favour but the amendments meant that Indian too had to abstain.
India was also among the 65 countries that abstained from voting on the Europe-backed resolution that called for just and lasting peace, and also immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine. This was in line with its earlier abstentions in the Assembly on resolutions condemning Russia.
India officially continues to maintain that it wants both parties involved to restart the dialogue and diplomacy process to resolve the conflict. The Trump administration has been engaging directly with Russia to end the war, keeping both EU and Ukraine out.

While the defeat in the General Assembly is a setback for the US, it will look to make up for it in the Security Council, hoping that France and UK will not veto it. Both countries have not used their veto power for decades. The voting was expected to take place later in the day. With effectively just one paragraph, the US resolution seeks lasting, and not just and lasting, peace and calls for a swift end to the conflict between the 2 countries. If approved, it will be the first real resolution to be adopted by the Council on the issue since the beginning of the war. The only 1 adopted so far was days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine for a special emergency session in the Assembly on Ukraine.
EU member states had sought 3 amendments in the US draft resolution, including replacing “Russia-Ukraine conflict” with “the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation”.
It also called for reaffirming the UN’s commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders, including its territorial waters. The third was a mention of “just, lasting and comprehensive” peace and not just lasting peace. Russia’s amendment for addressing the “root causes” of the conflict was rejected.