South Africa abstained from voting against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the emergency special session of the United Nations.

On Wednesday, the majority of the 193 UN member states voted against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but 35 countries, including South Africa, abstained. 

South Africa’s representative to the UN, Mathu Joyini, explained that the resolution did not create a conducive setting for “diplomacy, dialogue, and mediation.”

“South Africa believes that the UN, especially in the context of Emergency Special Sessions … should be used as a platform to build bridges, address the divergence of views, provide recommendations and support for the parties to engage with the spirit of compromise, while de-escalating tensions, committing to the cessation of hostilities, and building trust and confidence,” Ms Joyini explained in a statement. 

Ms Joyini said South Africa “would have also preferred an open and transparent process to negotiate the resolution … This would have allowed all of us, as equal members of the assembly, to present our views and ideally reach a level of understanding before the text was tabled.”

The United Nations ordered Russia to “immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders” following its invasion of Ukraine on February 24. 

Of the five BRICS nations — Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa — only Brazil voted in favour of the resolution.  Eritrea was one of only five African countries that voted against it in the rare emergency session following more than two days of debate.

Uganda said it had abstained to uphold its “neutrality” as the incoming chair of the Non-Aligned Movement (Nam), a forum of 120 developing countries set up to stop their members from becoming instruments in Cold War power games.