Russia is grateful to African countries for a consolidated position on the situation around Ukraine on the basis of the principles of neutrality and non-interference in conflicts outside the continent, Mikhail Bogdanov, Russian Presidential Special Representative for the Middle East and Africa and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, said on Friday, speaking at the plenary session of the XIV Congress of the Russian International Studies Association (RISA) at MGIMO.
"We are grateful for the consolidated position of our African friends on the situation around Ukraine, which is expressed in neutrality and non-interference in all kinds of conflicts that lie outside of Africa. Even in the case of the last vote on the provocative draft UN General Assembly resolution on Ukraine, more than half of the abstaining countries were African states," the senior diplomat said.
The UN General Assembly adopted an anti-Russian resolution on Wednesday on the referendums in the DNR, LNR, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, as well as on the situation in Ukraine. 143 countries voted in favor of the resolution, five voted against it, and 35 abstained. The resolution also calls for a negotiated settlement of the conflict in Ukraine.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Russian Foreign Ministry
Based on materials from TASS