There's been 'shock' and disappointment among European as well as former US government officials at how the United Nations General Assembly vote went on Monday.
In something unprecedented while the Ukraine war has been on, now having reached the three-year mark, the United States voted alongside Russia to veto European attempts to strengthen language related to a resolution on the conflict's anniversary.
In total 18 countries voted against the Ukrainian-drafted resolution at the UN General Assembly that condemned Moscow and called for a Russian withdrawal from Ukraine.
Many observers thought the US would at least simply abstain; instead it opposed the motions alongside nations like Russia, Israel, North Korea, Sudan, Belarus, and Hungary.
The European-backed resolution, which was ultimately adopted with 93 votes in favor, expressed "concern over the ongoing full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation," and underscored its "devastating and long-lasting consequences for Ukraine, regional stability, and global security."
It urged "de-escalation, an immediate ceasefire, and a peaceful resolution to the conflict" while demanding Russia’s "complete and unconditional withdrawal" from Ukrainian territory.
The explanation of US Ambassador to the UN Dorothy Shea was very revealing, and marks a significant shift in perspective compared to the prior Biden admin. As journalist and war observer Dave DeCamp explains:
In remarks to the UN, US Ambassador Dorothy Shea referred to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an “escalation of the Russia-Ukraine war” and said the conflict started “11 years ago,” referring to the war that broke out in Ukraine following the US-backed coup in 2014 that ousted former President Viktor Yanukovych.
The language from Shea marks a significant shift from the Biden administration, which always referred to the war as an “unprovoked” Russian invasion despite the history of US and NATO involvement in Ukraine.
Shea said that the many UN resolutions that have demanded a Russian withdrawal from Ukraine have failed to end the conflict. “Since the start of the war 11 years ago, the United Nations has repeatedly condemned Russia’s blatant violations of the UN Charter. Multiple resolutions of the General Assembly have demanded that Russia withdraw its forces from Ukraine,” she said.
“Those resolutions have failed to stop the war. It has now dragged on for far too long, and at far too terrible a cost to the people in Ukraine, in Russia, and beyond,” Shea added.
The White House position appears to be less concerned with endlessly wrangling over blame, and more with finding a peaceful solution to the conflict.
"Generations of Ukrainians and Russians have died unnecessarily as the war has brought the world closer to a nuclear confrontation," Amb. Shea continued. "The longer it continues, the greater the suffering for both nations. This war must end now."
Several reports have in the wake of the vote collected quotes expressing outrage over the "shameful" vote...
- Former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt described it on X, formerly Twitter, as a "shameful moment in US history."
- Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul was among those who condemned the American vote as "one of the most shocking foreign policy events of my lifetime."
- Another former diplomat, Steven Pifer, ex-U.S. envoy to Kyiv, posted on X: "how appalling was US vote on UN resolution on just, lasting peace to settle Russia Ukraine war?"
- Republican Senator John Curtis (R-UT) said on X that he was "deeply troubled by the vote at the UN today which put us on the same side as Russia and North Korea."
- Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley did not criticize the U.S. vote directly but posted on X that "we must choose a side, and it should never be the side of dictators."
But in the end, as the Trump administration tries to pursue a truce deal in Eastern Europe, the US had simply introduced its own resolution at the UNGA that called for peace in Ukraine, but the whole showdown and divide resulted after European countries added an amendment that inserted anti-Russian language.