Monday marked the third anniversary of the large -scale invasion of Ukraine Russia. To mark the occasion, Ukraine sponsored a resolution to the General Assembly of the United Nations condemning the Russian invasion and supporting “sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine in its internationally recognized borders”.
The resolution was adopted with 93 countries in favor, 18 against and 65 abstain.
This marked a steep drop in support for Ukraine – and the conviction of Russia – because a similar resolution of UNGA was adopted in 2022, by a chief of 141 in favor, five against, and 35 s’ abstaining.
One of the biggest changes: the United States was among the countries to pass its vote from a “yes” to a “no”. Washington, previously under the Biden administration, had been at the forefront of the mobilization of support for Ukraine on the international scene. The newly inaugurated Trump administration, however, has repeatedly denied Ukraine and has pursued peace talks with Russia, while Accusing Kyiv of having triggered the war.
Obviously, the majority of the world community continues to condemn the aggression of Russia. But just as clearly, the approval is not as noisy as before – and some of the UNGA vote switches seem directly linked to the change of heart of the United States. How is it going in the Asia-Pacific region?
For reference, here is my Overview of the 2022 vote::
In the Asia-Pacific region covered by the diplomat, only two countries voted against resolution: Russia itself and North Korea. Ten countries have abstained: Bangladesh, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Mongolia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Tadjikistan and Vietnam. (Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan did not vote at all.) Meanwhile, 14 countries in Asia-Pacific not only voted in favor, but co-groove the resolution: Australia, Cambodia, Fiji, Japan, Kiribati, The Marshall Islands, Micronesia, New Zealand, Palau, Papouasie-Nouvelle-Guinée, South Korea, Samoa, Singapore and Timor-Leste.
In 2025, 20 countries in the diplomat’s coverage area voted yes on resolution, and four voted not – Russia and North Korea, as in 2022, but also in the Marshall and the Palau Islands. Sixteen countries have abstained, including four which had supported the resolution of 2022: the Brunei, the federated states of Micronesia, Kiribati and Tuvalu. (Uzbekistan, which has also abstained this time, did not vote at all on the resolution of 2022.)
Overall, therefore, the voting patters in Asia -Pacific in Unga have remained largely consistent – but the few exceptions are revealing. The three free associated partners of the United States in the Pacific – the Marshall Islands, Micronesia and the Palaos – all moved the support of Ukraine, modifying their votes yes in 2022 to abstentions or outright votes.
It is the most obvious sign of the Asia-Pacific region of American change on the position of other countries on the Russian-Ukraine war. Other American allies who had expressed opposition to the invasion of Russia – Australia, Japan, the Philippines and South Korea – have all continued to support the resolution of the Unga reiterating this position.
In other regions, history was continuity rather than change. As in 2022, all the States of Central Asia abstained from the vote or did not vote. However, it should be noted that none of them rejected the resolution, despite a global change in the number of countries supporting Russia. Obviously, Moscow’s efforts to influence the governments of Central Asia to support them did not succeed.
Northeast Asia has seen exactly the same voting models reproduced, the American allies in Japan and South Korea supporting Ukraine, North Korea supporting Russia and China and Mongolia abstaining. This year, however, the choice of China to abstain, rather than voting squarely against the resolution was all the more notable, given the change of position of the United States. On the same day of UNGA vote, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke with the Vladimir Putin of Russia, declaring China and Russia “real friends who share difficulties, support each other and pursue joint development ». Apparently, this support did not extend to this particular vote of the Unga.
Also in South Asia, the vote was largely the same – Bhutan, Maldives and Nepal all supported Ukraine resolution, while Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka all abstented. The only change was Afghanistan, which voted “yes” in 2022 but did not vote this time. But it is less a change of position than the result of a change in the bureaucracy of the United Nations. In 2022, Afghanistan was still represented at the United Nations by the ambassador of the former Afghan Republic; This is no longer the case, but the Taliban candidate has not yet been recognized.
Southeast Asia has continued to be a strong support for Ukraine, if only rhetorical. Of the 10 members of the Anase, seven – Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand – voted in favor of the resolution, just like the member of the Timor -Leste of Asean. The only exception was the Brunei, who fell back on his previous vote yes to abstain this time. Vietnam and Laos, which have close ties to Russia, also abstained, as they did in 2022.
Oceania is the most interesting part of Asia-Pacific in terms of changing voting patterns. As indicated above, two of the United States allies among the States of the Pacific Island – the Marshall Islands and Palau – joined Washington to reject the resolution of this year after supporting the 2022 version. The federated states of Micronesia also moved his vote, but have chosen to abstain rather than voting no. As a sign of chaotic behind-the-scenes diplomacy which preceded the vote, the three were still listed among the co-sponsors of the resolution in the Draft version dated February 18Even if none of them voted for this at the end. This also suggests that their change of position was not part of the principle, but strongly influence by the shocking decision of the United States to vote no.
Two other states of the Pacific islands also abstained after supporting the 2022 resolution: Kiribati and Tuvalu. Interestingly, the two are considered to occupy different camps in geopolitical competition in the Pacific Islands region. Kiribati got closer to China Since its official relations in 2019, while Tuvalu wrapped a security agreement With Australia in 2023. Equally fascinating, the Solomon Islands – which are also considered to be close to China – voted to support Ukraine in 2022 and 2025.
The UNGA vote this time has shown the impact of geopolitical affiliation as well as its limits. Despite the change of position of the United States, very little of its allies in Asia -Pacific have followed suit, and some partners close to China – not only the Solomon Islands but also Cambodia – voted yes despite Beijing’s preference To protect Russia from criticism. But the big question is whether these UNGA resolutions really have in a context where the United States and Russia seem ready to decide the fate of Ukraine between them.