18 African countries that abstained from UN condemnation of Russia over Ukraine

Eighteen African countries abstained from voting for or against a United Nations resolution that condemned Russia over its illegal annexation of four Ukrainian territories. Four others did not cast a vote at all meaning as many as 32 African countries voted in favour of the resolution that garnered 143 YES votes, 5 NO votes and 35 ABSTENTIONS. The abstaining nations were: Burundi Central African Republic Congo Republic Eritrea Eswatini Ethiopia Guinea Lesotho Mali Mozambique South Africa South Sudan Sudan Togo Uganda Tanzania and Zimbabwe A UN statement on the vote read: "The results were 143 Member States in favour, with five voting against, and 35 abstentions. The countries who voted against were Belarus, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Nicaragua, Russia and Syria. "A majority of those countries abstaining were African nations, alongside China and India. "The resolution “defending the principles” of the UN Charter, notes that the regions of Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia are temporarily occupied by Russia as a result of aggression, violating Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and political independence," it added. The quartet that did not vote at all were, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tome e Principe. SARA