Ministry of External Affairs clarifies that India’s vote at UN Security Council was not against Russia

A day after procedural voting at United Nations Security Council, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs claimed that it did not vote “against Russia”. The voting was for allowing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to address the Council virtually during a debate on the Ukrainian situation on August 24.

Russia was against allowing the Ukrainian President to speak via Video TeleConferencing and called for him to come in person to New York, or to allow the Ukrainian Ambassador to speak during the debate that marked six months of the conflict. 

During the procedural voting, India and the remaining 12 members voted in favor of Mr. Zelensky speaking at the debate, While China abstained from voting.

(Read more: India, for the first time, votes against Russia at United Nations Security Council on Ukraine issues)

However, Officials of the Indian MEA said that the vote was not about Russia or Ukraine, but about whether to vote for or against Mr. Zelensky’s participation.

Indian MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, “My understanding is that we have not voted against anybody. It was a proposal to allow him to speak virtually, and we allowed it. It was the third occasion he spoke virtually [at the UN], and we supported that. So there is no question of us voting against Russia.”