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Russia’s UN envoy castigates situation in General Assembly on referendums resolution

Russia wanted the UN General Assembly to consider a possible secret ballot vote on the US resolution condemning referendums in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics and the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions

Russian Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya Russian Foreign Ministry/TASS

Russian Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya

© Russian Foreign Ministry/TASS

UN, October 11. /TASS/. Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya has castigated the situation regarding the special session of the United Nation’s General Assembly on Ukraine.

"My reaction is that it was an outrageous manipulation on behalf of the General Assembly that I have never seen during my tenure here," Nebenzya told journalists. "I believe that you will never come across to similar cases in the [UN] history of what happened today."

Russia wanted the UN General Assembly to consider a possible secret ballot vote on the US resolution condemning referendums in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics and the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions. However, before the debates started Albania, in breach of the procedural norms, initiated a proposal regarding an open vote on the resolution and the General Assembly accepted it.

Nebenzya also told journalists he believed that UN General Assembly President Csaba Korosi employed a policy of double standards in regard to the resolution at the issue.

"It was an obvious manifestation of double standards and it is detrimental to the integrity of the chairmanship," the Russian diplomat added.

The UN General Assembly decided on Monday against Russia’s proposal on a secret ballot vote regarding the referendums in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics and the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions. Fourteen countries voted in favor of Russia’s proposal, 100 voted against and 38 abstained.

From September 23 to September 27, the DPR and the LPR as well as the Kherson and the Zaporozhye Regions held referendums where the majority of voters opted to join Russia.

On September 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin and the heads of the four regions signed treaties on their accession to Russia.

On October 5, President Putin signed laws on ratifying the accession of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) as well as of the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions to Russia following a granted approval from both houses of the Russian parliament - the State Duma and the Federation Council.

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