Rabat – Morocco was absent from a UN vote on Thursday that saw Russia’s membership in the UN Human Rights Council suspended.
A total of 93 UN members voted in favor of the resolution to suspend the membership of the Russian Federation in the Human rights council, with 24 against it, and 58 nations abstaining from the vote.
Among the countries that voted against the decision are China, Iran, Syria, and Algeria. Meanwhile, some African countries like South Africa and Senegal abstained from the vote despite pressure from Moscow.
This marks the third time that Morocco has abstained from voting on a resolution concerning the Russia-Ukraine war, in line with the kingdom’s non-interference approach to the conflict.
Like a number of other countries from Africa and the Middle East, Morocco has avoided taking sides in the conflict, and has instead called for peaceful conflict resolution. At the same time Morocco supports the territorial integrity of Ukraine and all UN members.
The country’s stance has invited criticism . The kingdom has defended its position, highlighting that it does that same in other conflicts, such as the ongoing Libyan crisis, where Morocco is the main mediator between the involved parties.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently recalled his country’s ambassadors from Morocco and Georgia, citing poor diplomatic results during wartime and their failure to “convince” the countries to “punish Russia.”
Zelensky similarly criticized Western powers that have put in place some sanctions against Russia, arguing that they could be doing more to weaken the Russian economy.
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