UN Votes to Denounce Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine

141 of the 193 members of the U.N. General Assembly voted Wednesday in favor of a non-binding resolution “deploring” Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

The resolution also demanded that Russia “immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.” The measure came to a vote in the General Assembly after Russia vetoed a similar resolution in the U.N. Security Council on Feb. 25. Among the resolution’s supporters were the U.S., Mexico, Nigeria, and Brazil, as well as every member of the E.U. Thirty-five countries abstained, including China, India, Iran, and South Africa. Five countries voted against the resolution: Russia, Belarus, Syria, North Korea, and Eritrea.

Some coverage across the spectrum called the resolution “historic.” Some outlets like Fox News (Right), Reuters (Center) and the Washington Post (Lean Left) featured the story more prominently on homepages. Some of Fox News’ coverage focused specifically on China’s abstain vote. Axios (Center) stood out by providing an interactive map showing how countries voted. Update 3/2/22 5:20 PM ET: The New York Times (Lean Left), The Week (Lean Left) and Newsweek (Center) reported 34 countries abstained, not 35, possibly because of an image tweeted by Ukrainian President Zelenskyy from before Equitorial Guinea's abstention was recorded. As of Wednesday afternoon, none of these outlets had changed their reporting to match the official tally.