Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Vassily Nebenzia explained on Monday Russia’s decision to abstain during the voting on the UNSC draft resolution on Afghanistan despite its will to continue to support the country, pointing that its principle concerns were ignored in it, Russian media report.
Nebenzia said Russia’s initiatives for the resolution on Afghanistan- drafted by the US, Britain and France- to include a provision on negative impacts that the mass evacuation of highly-qualified Afghan personnel will have on the contry’s socio-economic development and the freezing of Afghanistan’s financial assets were ignored.
He pointed that Afghanistan will not be able to accomplish its sustainable development’s goal in the situation crated by the brain drain, underscoring also the negative effects the freezing of the country’s financial asset will have.
Meanwhile, the US Permanent Representative to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield has expressed the disappointment of the United States after Russia and China abstained from voting on the UN resolution on Afghanistan, saying they took into account some of the concerns both the Chinese and the Russians raised.
Thomas-Greenfield pointed that the text of the approved resolution contains issues that are important for every member of the UN Security Council, including China and Russia.
Russian diplomat was bewildered by the speed the resolution was passed with, pointing at the same time to the attempts of the US to shift the responsibility for the failure of its 20-year presence in Afghanistan to the Taliban.
China, that also abstained from voting on the resolution, criticized the US for the civilian casualties their drone strike caused and echoed some of Russia’s concerns with the Chinese Deputy Ambassador Geng Shuang pointing that the US and its allies have left behind a “huge catastrophe they have created”
Shuang also blamed the US for trying to shift the blame and responsibility to Afghans’ neighboring countries, the Taliban and the Security Council.
The UNSC resolution passed Monday with 13 votes in favor and no objections demands the Taliban to honor their commitment to allow people to leave Afghanistan freely but envisions no “safe zone” though it was mentioned by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Be the first to comment