Servicemen of the Ukrainian National Guard take positions in central Kyiv, after Russia launched a massive military operation against Ukraine, February 25, 2022. (Image: Reuters)
Brazil voted on Friday for a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that would have deplored the Russian invasion of Ukraine, despite some reluctance by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to condemn Russia.
- Reuters
- Last Updated:February 26, 2022, 08:05 IST
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Brazil voted on Friday for a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that would have deplored the Russian invasion of Ukraine, despite some reluctance by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to condemn Russia.
The South American country was among the 11 council members that voted in favor of the resolution, while China, India and the United Arab Emirates abstained from the vote on the U.S.-drafted text.
The draft was vetoed by Russia and is now expected to be taken up by the 193-member U.N. General Assembly.
Reuters reported earlier on Friday that Brazil would vote in favor of the resolution despite doubts of its far-right president.
Bolsonaro, who recently met with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, on Thursday scolded his Vice President Hamilton Mourao for condemning the Russian invasion, saying it was not Mourao’s job to speak about the crisis in eastern Europe.
Brazil’s foreign ministry on Thursday expressed concern about Russia’s military operations and urged a diplomatic solution, but stopped short of condemning the invasion.
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Just days before the invasion, standing alongside Putin at the Kremlin, Bolsonaro said he was “in solidarity with Russia,” without elaborating. He later told reporters Putin had peaceful intentions.
The U.S. State Department deplored Bolsonaro’s comments and said they undermined diplomatic efforts to avert a disaster as well as Brazil’s own calls for a peaceful resolution.
Ukraine’s diplomatic representative in Brasilia, Anatoliy Tkach, called again on Friday for a strong Brazilian condemnation of Russia’s “aggression” against his country.
Australia Looks to Join the World in Imposing Direct Sanctions on Putin
Australia seeks to join others in imposing direct sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and has extended its punitive financial measures to members of Russia’s parliament and more oligarchs, Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Saturday.
The United States, Canada, European Union and Britain said they would impose sanctions on Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, as Washington looks to ramp up pressure on Moscow following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“It is an exceptional step to sanction leaders, but this is an exceptional situation,” Payne said at a press conference, adding that the government is seeking advice on how to follow other nations in the move.
“Vladimir Putin has unparalleled personal power over his country and he has chosen to go to war against a neighbour that posed no threat to Russia, because he wants to reverse history and take away the freedom and the democracy that the Ukrainian people chose for themselves.”
In its new sanctions, Payne said Australia will target 339 members of the State Duma, the lower house of Russian parliament and eight more oligarchs. The new measures follow a series of Australian sanctions announced earlier in the week.
“The next immediate priority is to continue sanctions on Vladimir Putin’s inner circle and on Russia’s defence industry,” Payne said.
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