MOSCOW, November 16. /TASS/. The resolution on human rights in Crimea, initiated by Ukraine and adopted by the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly, does not help solve the problems involving Crimea and Donbass while it serves the interests of those seeking to disrupt the Minsk accords, head of Russia’s Federation Council (upper house of parliament) Committee for International Affairs Konstantin Kosachev told reporters on Wednesday.
The senator said that "the document is not legally binding and will not become such even if approved by the General Assembly." "However, such high-profile resolutions neither facilitate solutions to the issues surrounding Crimea, Donbass and Ukraine nor help advance the Minsk process," Kosachev added. Moreover, in his words, such documents play into the hands of those who seek to disrupt the implementation of the Minsk agreements citing international resolutions and claiming to have the support of the world community.
The Russian senator expressed regret that "many fall for these gimmicks" as the West that "is always ready to put forward some economic and diplomatic arguments in order to master the countries that try to play the game of independence and multipolarity." "However, the time of blackmailers is coming to an end. The new world needs to reach common positions instead of making others sing in unison in support of another controversial resolution," he concluded.
On Wednesday, the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution initiated by Ukraine which condemns the human rights situation in Crimea and calls for international monitoring. A total of 73 countries, including the US, the UK, Canada and EU member states, voted in favor of the resolution while 23 states, namely Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Venezuela, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Serbia, Syria, Uzbekistan and others voted against the document. Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan were among 76 countries that abstained from voting.