UN adopts resolution on human rights situation in temporarily occupied Crimea

This was reported on the website of Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

Since 2014, UN member states have supported Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity within internationally recognized borders by a majority vote. This year, 82 countries voted for the adoption of the resolution. This is the highest number of votes since 2016. It was then that Ukraine for the first time submitted a resolution on the human rights situation in the temporarily occupied Crimea to the General Assembly.

This year's resolution contains the main facts about the gross violations of human rights in the temporarily occupied Crimea by Russia's occupation authorities. It takes into account the context of a full-scale war. The new provisions, in particular regarding the extension of the resolution to all temporarily occupied territories, received high support from the UN.

Therefore, the UN General Assembly demands that the Russian Federation immediately stop full-scale aggression against Ukraine. It also demands that Russia withdraw all its armed forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.

“The UN member states condemned the Russian Federation's violation of Article 2 (4) of the UN Charter and the use of Crimea for the purpose of full-scale armed aggression against Ukraine and the occupation of the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions,” the report said.

In addition, the resolution condemned Russia's continued disregard of international law in the field of human rights, as well as its discrimination against residents of the temporarily occupied Crimea, in particular Crimean Tatars, as well as Ukrainians and persons belonging to other ethnic and religious groups.

Russia was also urged to stop the deportation of Ukrainian children and to cancel the simplified procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship for Ukrainian children who do not have parents or are deprived of parental care.

The members of the UN instructed the UN Secretary General to take all necessary steps for the access of monitoring groups to all temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.  During the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, he will need to present a report on the implementation of the resolution.

“We are grateful for the international consolidated support of our state in defending its territorial integrity and sovereignty, rights and fundamental freedoms. Those guilty of gross human rights violations and war crimes will be brought to justice,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted. 

On December 16, the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, commented on the adoption of the resolution.

“The world condemns the actions of the aggressor - Ukraine receives a massive missile strike in response,” he wrote.

He noted that for almost nine years the world has been witnessing Russia's brazen violation of the principles of the international order. According to him, human rights are an empty sound for the Russian Federation.

“They are appropriating foreign territories, engaging in criminal prosecution of Crimeans, militarizing young people on the territory of the peninsula, and exerting pressure on regional minorities,” Lubinets wrote. 

He added that the international community has once again confirmed its commitment to the sovereignty, political independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

“Forcible seizure of Crimea is illegal, and therefore the peninsula and the rest of the territories seized by Russia must be returned to Ukraine,” Lubinets concluded.