UN General Assembly adopts resolution on problem of militarization of Crimea

Sixty-three countries voted in favour of the resolution, nineteen countries voted against, sixty-six abstained.

As an Ukrinform correspondent reports, the resolution with this title is adopted by the UN General Assembly for the second time already, but the present document has been supplemented with fundamentally new provisions.

In particular, it calls on the Russian Federation to "refrain from extending its jurisdiction over the nuclear facilities and material in Crimea" and also expresses concern over the use of seized Ukrainian military industry enterprises in the occupied Crimea by the Russian Federation.

The resolution recalls the prohibition for the occupying power to compel resident of the occupied territories to serve in its armed or auxiliary forces, “including through pressure or propaganda that is aimed at securing voluntary enlistment”, condemns the efforts to use the education of children in Crimea in order to indoctrinate them to join the Russian military forces and urges the Russian Federation to stop such activity.

The document also focuses on the social and economic aspects of Russian aggression. "The security concerns and the build-up of forces in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov regions further destabilize the economy and social services, particularly in the coastal regions of Ukraine," the document reads.

The UN General Assembly expresses its concern over the ongoing actions of the Russian Federation in parts of the Black Sea surrounding Crimea, in the Sea of Azov and in the Kerch Strait, including their militarization, which pose further threats to Ukraine and undermine the stability of the broader region.

The present resolution, as well as the previous one, condemns the construction of the Kerch Strait bridge, which facilitates the further militarization of Crimea and “restricts the size of ships that can reach the Ukrainian ports on the Azov coast.”

The increasing military presence of the Russian Federation in parts of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, including the Kerch Strait, and the harassment of commercial vessels “further aggravates the economic and social situation in the broader Donetsk region already affected by the temporary occupation of Crimea.”

The UN General Assembly also condemns visits of Russian officials to the temporarily occupied Crimea and calls upon all Member States to refrain from any visits to Crimea that are not agreed with Ukraine.

In addition, the resolution calls upon all Member States to cooperate with the United Nations “to encourage and support efforts to put an end to the Russian occupation of Crimea as rapidly as possible and to refrain from any dealings with the Russian Federation regarding Crimea that are inconsistent with this aim.”

The draft resolution was prepared by 39 countries, including the USA, the UK, Germany, France, Ukraine, Italy, Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Hungary, Bulgaria and others.

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