Day 232 of the Invasion of Ukraine: 143 out of 193 UN Countries Condemned the Annexation of Ukrainian regions by Russia

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Here are the highlights of events related to the war in Ukraine over the past 24 hours:

143 out of 193 countries in the UN condemned the annexation of Ukrainian regions by Russia

The UN General Assembly passed a resolution condemning Russia's annexation of four Ukrainian regions. The document received unexpectedly great support - 143 out of a total of 193 countries voted "In favor". Together with the Russian side, Belarus, Syria, North Korea and Nicaragua voted “Against”. 35 countries abstained from the vote, including China and India, as well as the former Soviet republics of Central Asia.

The UN resolution received more support from documents that condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea. This time, Turkey and Saudi Arabia voted against Russia's violation of international law. During the special session, US representative Linda Thomas-Greenfield said that the vote is important not only for the future of Ukraine and Europe, but also for the UN itself. And Russian representative Vasily Nebenzya called the document politicized and frankly provocative. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the countries that supported the resolution and described it as historic.

In his late video address, the president said the situation in all areas bordering the front line remains very complex. Zelensky announced a shelling in the city of Nikopol, in which there were casualties, among them a 6-year-old child. Local authorities reported shelling this morning in the Kyiv region, without further details. During the night, the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv was subjected to massive rocket fire, where a residential building collapsed, announced Mayor Oleksandr Senkevich. The head of the Ukrainian Sumy region, Dmytro Zhivitsky, wrote on social networks that as a result of the shelling in recent hours, no one was injured, but more than 7,600 households remain without electricity after the Russian forces destroyed 3 power plants in the area. Russia has affected about a third of the energy infrastructure of Ukraine in the missile attacks on Monday and Tuesday, Energy Minister Herman Haluschenko said.

"The more brazen and cruel Russian terror becomes, the more obvious it is to the world that helping Ukraine to protect its skies is one of the most important humanitarian tasks for Europe," Zelensky said.

He described yesterday's meeting in the Ramstein format in Brussels as "very productive". New military aid to Ukraine - anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense systems - was discussed. Britain has announced it is providing missiles for the US's NASAMS systems, as well as 18 additional howitzers and hundreds of drones to support Ukrainian intelligence.

#UNGA unequivocally rejected Russia’s illegal annexation of #Ukrainian territories, another blatant violation of the @UN Charter.

143 votes in favour confirm Russia’s international isolation.

Russia will be held accountable. The EU will stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes. pic.twitter.com/qqW8KHHfyP

— Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) October 12, 2022

Meanwhile, authorities in Kyiv reported new missile strikes on critical infrastructure in the capital region. "Kamikaze drones again," Kyrylo Tymoshenko, deputy head of the presidential administration, wrote in Telegram.

Zelensky: The war has entered a new phase

"The war has entered a new phase," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with German public television ZDF.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky did not rule out a Russian nuclear strike, but warned that Europe should not give in to blackmail.

"Europe still can't get over its old Russia. How will the Russians react? What will Putin say? What will happen when one day Putin is gone? These are Europe's worries. Energy dependence, nuclear blackmail - all this is possible, because Europe allowed it. For years, Europe bowed to Russia," Zelensky said. He blamed the West for not following the annexation of Crimea and allowing Moscow to continue its aggressive policy towards Ukraine.

"Why did Russia launch more than 100 missile strikes this week? Putin feels that he is losing support and trust among Russians. Putin cannot boast of successes on the battlefield, he has to somehow justify the aggression, and that is why he launched so many strikes on Ukraine. Why did the whole world allow itself to be afraid of one person? 200 countries are discussing during the UN General Assembly how to deal with one person. With one single person?" asked Zelensky. Without naming Putin once during the more than 45-minute interview, Zelensky said that before Russia invaded Ukraine, he repeatedly sought dialogue with the Russian president, but to no avail.

"Once again, he does not understand that with each subsequent missile attack, the chances of us agreeing to negotiations decrease. For us, he is the collective image of the terrorist. Why should we negotiate with him? We will negotiate with Russia, but not with him. Someone will always come after him," said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

"Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from map": Biden hails UNGA vote on Moscow

US President Joe Biden on Wednesday hailed the adoption of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution that condemned Russia's annexation of four Ukrainian regions.

"Today, the overwhelming majority of the world--nations from every region, large and small, representing a wide array of ideologies and governments - voted to defend the United Nations Charter and condemn Russia's illegal attempt to annex Ukrainian territory by force," Biden said in a statement released by White House. "143 nations stood on the side of freedom, sovereignty, and territorial integrity--even more than the 141 nations that voted in March to unequivocally condemn Russia's war against Ukraine," he added.

Biden's statement came shortly after 143 members voted in favor of the resolution in the assembly which houses 193 members. Five voted countries voted against the resolution while 35 abstained, including India.

The US president said Russia is tearing at the very foundations of international peace and security.

"The stakes of this conflict are clear to all--and the world has sent a clear message in response: Russia cannot erase a sovereign state from the map. Russia cannot change borders by force. Russia cannot seize another country's territory as its own," he added.

Nearly eight months into this war, Biden said the world has just demonstrated that it is more united and more determined than ever to hold Russia accountable for its violations.

"Together with the UN General Assembly, we will not tolerate illegal attempts at annexation or the theft of a neighbor's land by force. We will stand up for international law, the UN Charter, and the rights and protections it affords to Ukraine and its people - and to every state and people everywhere," he said.

The UNGA resolution, adopted by the members where no one wields a veto, condemns Russia's "attempted illegal annexations" of the four Ukrainian regions following "so-called referendums".

This vote comes two days after Ukraine and Russia clashed in the UNGA this week. India was among more than 100 countries that voted to reject Russia's call to hold a secret ballot on a resolution condemning Moscow's "attempted illegal annexation" of Ukrainian territories.

Russian President Vladimir Putin in the last week of September signed the documents to formally announced the annexation of four regions - Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.

This week saw heightened tension between Russia and Ukraine after the Crimea bridge blast, which prompted missile strikes on major Ukraine cities from Moscow.

The Institute for the Study of War: VSU continues its advance towards Kherson and Luhansk region

The Armed Forces of Ukraine (VSU) continue counterattacks in Kherson and Luhansk regions. The Russian occupiers have taken up a defensive position. This is stated in a new report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

After a lightning counter-attack in Kharkiv and Lyman regions, the VSU continued to advance towards Kremenna and Svatovo in Luhansk region. Several settlements were liberated. The occupiers are trying to build a defense system.

The liberation of Luhansk region

Analysts note that Ukrainian troops have reached the outskirts of Malinovka (44 km northwest of Svatovo) and have strengthened their positions in Dvurychne (54 km northwest of Svatovo).

At the same time, the Russian invaders shelled from covered positions in the direction of Kupyansk and tried to attack west of Kremenna, strengthening defensive positions in the Svatovo-Kremenna area.

Meanwhile, the VSU repulsed an attack by Russian forces in Novosadovo (16 km west of Kremenna), despite Russian propaganda reporting "capture of the village".

"Russian forces can conduct counterattacks west of Kremena to slow down the advance of Ukrainian forces and buy time to reinforce and supply units and strengthen defensive positions. However, Russian forces in the area are likely to be significantly weakened," analysts believe.

The counterattack in the Kherson region

Ukrainian soldiers continue to develop a counter-offensive in the Kherson region. On 12 October, the Ukrainian Armed Forces conducted counter-offensive operations in the north-west and west of Kherson Oblast, continuing to advance south of the front line in the north-west of the oblast and attacking towards Miloye along the west bank of the Dnieper River.

The Russians said Ukrainian armed forces were trying to advance through the Davidov Ford "basin" in western Kherson Oblast. Russian military correspondents report that the Ukrainian army has attacked the occupiers in the direction of Ishchenko and Kostroma.

"Ukrainian military representatives confirmed that the Ukrainian armed forces liberated five settlements in the northern part of the region, but otherwise remained operationally silent about specific ground maneuvers in the area," the analysts added.

Putin is meeting Erdogan in Astana

The presidents of Russia and Turkey Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet today in the capital of Kazakhstan, Astana. The sixth summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia is being held there.

Erdogan will meet first with the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, and then with Putin. Expectations are the main topic in the talks to be the conflict in Ukraine and Turkey's efforts to be the last to achieve peace, as well as the grain export corridor from Ukraine, Turkish state TV TRT reported.

In Astana, Erdogan will also participate in the fourth high-level meeting of the Council for Strategic Cooperation between Kazakhstan and Turkey.

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