The Maldives has joined 140 other UN members states in denouncing Russia over its invasion of Ukraine as the United Nations General Assembly to pass a resolution.
In a rare UN General Assembly emergency meeting called by the UN Security Council, 141 members out of the 193 member states voted in favor of the resolution while 5 voted against the text that condemned Russia.
The five include Russia itself as well as Belarus which is acting as a launching pad for the invasion and Eritrea, North Korea and Syria.
UN had said that 35 member states had abstained from voting for the resolution including China.
The Maldives was one of the four countries that supported the resolution and were joined by Afghanistan, Bhutan, and Nepal.
Meanwhile, heavy-hitters in South Asia like India and Pakistan joined Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in abstaining from the vote.
Reuters commented that while General Assembly resolutions are non-binding, they carry political weight, with Wednesday's vote representing a symbolic victory for Ukraine and increasing Moscow's international isolation. it noted that even Russia's traditional ally Serbia voted against it.
The text of the resolution deplores Russia's "aggression against Ukraine."
Reuters reported that the last time the Security Council convened an emergency session of the General Assembly was in 1982, according to the U.N. website.
