Uzbekistan votes against UNGA resolution on the “militarization of the Crimea”

Uzbekistan did not support the UN General Assembly resolution initiated by Ukraine on the “militarization of the Crimea and Sevastopol, as well as parts of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov”.

The resolution was supported by 66 countries, 19 were against and 72 abstained.

In particular, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Belarus, Bolivia, Burundi, Cambodia, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, Laos, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Russian Federation, Serbia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela and Zimbabwe voted against.

Among the countries that abstained from voting are China, Kazakhstan, Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Qatar, South Africa, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and others.

The document expresses “serious concern over the gradual militarization of the Crimea by the Russian Federation as an occupying power.”

The General Assembly also voiced “concern” over reports of “continuing destabilization of the Crimea" because of Russian supplies of weapons to the territory of Ukraine, including “nuclear aircraft and missiles, weapons, ammunition” and the deployment of military personnel on the peninsula.

The General Assembly “insistently urged” Russia to stop such activities.

The resolution condemns the conduct of numerous military exercises of the Russian armed forces in Crimea. As noted in the document, such actions “could undermine regional security, as well as entail significant long-term negative environmental consequences in the region”.

In addition, when adopting the document, the General Assembly conveyed its worries in connection with the continuing actions of Moscow in the Black Sea regions that surround the Crimea and the Sea of Azov. Among these actions is the “militarization”. As noted, this creates additional threats to Ukraine and “undermines stability in the region as a whole”.

The Crimea became part of Russia after a referendum held there in March 2014, at which 96.77% of the voters of the Republic of Crimea and 95.6% of the residents of Sevastopol voted for it. The Crimean authorities held a referendum after the coup d'état in Ukraine in February 2014.

Ukraine still considers the Crimean peninsula its “temporarily occupied territory”. The Russian leadership has previously stated repeatedly that the inhabitants of Crimea voted democratically, in full compliance with international law and the UN Charter. According to Vladimir Putin, the issue of Crimea is “completely closed”.