The vote was 143-5 with 35 abstentions, a sign of strong global opposition to the seven-month war and Moscow’s attempt to grab Ukrainian territory. 

North Korea, Belarus, Syria and Nicaragua joined Russia in voting against the resolution, while Central Asian countries abstained - including Uzbekistan - along with China, India, Pakistan, Mongolia and Cuba.

Russia’s UN ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, had appealed to countries to vote against the resolution, denouncing its sponsors as “unscrupulous Western blackmailers.” 

The document, approved by the UN General Assembly, expresses a “commitment to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders.”