Russia-Ukraine Conflict: Why India Abstained From UNSC Vote To Call For General Assembly Session | Explained

This is the second time in two days that India abstained on a UNSC resolution. Next a rare emergency special session will be convened for the UN General Assembly on Russia-Ukraine conflict.

India’s Permanent Representative to UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti said that India is deeply disturbed by the recent turn of developments in Ukraine and urges all efforts are made for an immediate cessation of violence and hostilities. Image: Getty

New Delhi: After abstaining from voting in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Friday on a draft resolution that condemned Russia’s ‘aggression’ against Ukraine, India Monday abstained from a UNSC procedure vote to call for a General Assembly session on the Ukraine crisis. 

The stand taken by India in the UNSC both on Friday and Monday on the Russian invasion of Ukraine was no surprise.

On both occasions, India said there is no other choice but to return to the path of diplomacy and dialogue to settle the Ukraine crisis. Next, a rare emergency special session will be convened for the UN General Assembly on Russia-Ukraine conflict. On Monday, New Delhi welcomed Moscow and Kyiv's decision to hold talks at the Belarus border.

In UN Security Council meeting on #Ukraine today 27 February, India abstained on the vote on the resolution to refer the matter to an emergency session of @UN General Assembly.

Our Explanation of Vote ⤵️ #IndiainUNSC pic.twitter.com/YRsjUOutw4

— PR/Amb T S Tirumurti (@ambtstirumurti) February 27, 2022

The UNSC on Friday voted on the resolution, mainly backed by the US and Albania. Several other countries, including Italy, Poland, Germany, Estonia, Luxembourg, and New Zealand, had supported the resolution. The resolution, however, did not pass as Russia vetoed the draft resolution, using its power as a permanent member.

In total, 11 nations voted in favour of the resolution, while three countries, including India, abstained. The other two were the UAE and China.

India’s Permanent Representative to UN Ambassador TS Tirumurti, in his speech in the UNSC on Friday, said India is deeply disturbed by the recent turn of developments in Ukraine, and urged all efforts are made for an immediate cessation of violence and hostilities.

“No solution can ever be arrived at the cost of human lives. The contemporary global order has been built on the UN Charter, international law and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states. All members need to honour these principles and find a constructive way forward. Dialogue is the only answer to settling disputes. However, daunting it may appear at this moment,” he said, adding: “We are also deeply concerned about the welfare of the Indian community, including a large number of Indian students in Ukraine.”

#IndiainUNSC

UNSC’s consideration of the draft resolution on Ukraine

📺Watch: India’s Explanation of Vote by Permanent Representative @AmbTSTirumurti ⤵️@MeaIndia pic.twitter.com/UB2L5JLuyS

— India at UN, NY (@IndiaUNNewYork) February 25, 2022

This statement by Tirumurti has assumed deep significance as India had historically chosen the path of non-alignment.

Why Did India Choose The Middle Path?

India has always tried to strike a balance between the US and Russia, its two most vital and crucial partners. India mostly depends on Russia for supply of arms and ammunitions, while the US is its prime partner in the field of trade and commerce.

Over the years, relation between India and US have improved in leaps and bounds. The trade data, according to figures released by the US Census Bureau, shows the goods trade between the two countries was worth $113.391 billion from January and December 2021. India exported goods worth over $73 billion, and imported goods worth a little over $40 billion dollars.     

This is a sign of deepening economic relationship between India and the US as bilateral trade between the two countries crossed the $100-billion mark last year.

With Russia, meanwhile, India always maintains a special bond.

Since the Cold War era, India and the Soviet Union had a strong strategic, military, economic, and diplomatic relationship. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Russia inherited its close relationship with India which resulted in both countries sharing a special relationship. Russia and India both term this bond as a "special and privileged strategic partnership".

The two countries signed a $5.43-billion contract for the supply of five units S-400 missiles in October 2018. The US has repeatedly asked India to withdraw from the deal, indicating that the Russian S-400 systems may trigger Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) sanctions. However, India didn’t pay heed as New Delhi repeatedly said that the S-400 purchase agreement with Russia is in the best interests of its security. Now, with sanctions imposed on Russia, India’s military sees a grim prospect of interrupted and delayed Russian defence kit supply.

According to Tirumurti's statement on Friday, by abstaining from vote, India retained the option of reaching out to relevant sides in an effort to bridge the gap and find the middle ground with an aim to foster dialogue and diplomacy. “It is a matter of regret that the path of diplomacy was given up. We must return to it. For all these reasons, India has chosen to abstain on this resolution,” he added.

However, the latest geopolitical situation is trickier than what it appears.

The recent cozy relationship between Russia and China, another upcoming super power in the world, has become headache to India.

With China, being an immediate neighbour, India has mostly shared peaceful relations for many decades. But since 2013, border disputes resurfaced between the two countries which had strained the bilateral relationship. In 2018, armed forces of both the countries went at loggerheads over Doklam plateau along the Bhutan border. In 2020, the skirmishes and standoffs in the Galwan Valley had hit the bilateral relationship.   

Expert noted that the growing nexus between Russia and China is a matter of concern for New Delhi. According geo-political analysts, if Russia goes ahead with the war in Ukraine, China most likely to act either along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) or on Taiwan.

In a recent telephonic conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also reiterated his long-standing conviction that the differences between Russia and the NATO group can only be resolved through honest and sincere dialogue.