The U.S. votes with Russia and North Korea

I wrote my Ph.D. dissertation on the efforts by the U.N. to end colonialism.  I was working on it in the late 1960s and early 1970s.  Most of the French, British, Spanish, and Belgian colonies had become independent by the time I completed my research.  At that time Puerto Rico and Russian client states were not considered colonies.  The Portuguese colonies, Southern Rhodesia, and South West Africa were colonies and the main focus of U.N. efforts.

The idea that one country could simply seize territory from another sovereign country was an antiquated idea.  When Iraq did attempt to conquer Kuwait, a large coalition of countries joined together in a successful attempt to roll back the conquest.  The U.S. was a leader in that effort.

Now we are marking the third anniversary of the attempt by Russia to conquer Ukraine.  Ukraine introduced a resolution to condemn Russian’s aggression and demand Russia’s withdrawal.  93 counties voted in favor of the resolution.  65  countries, including many African countries, China, and India, abstained.  Only 18 U.N. members voted against the resolution.  Some I can’t understand.  Why the Marshall Islands, why Palau, why Eritrea or Mali?  I can, of course, understand Russia, Belarus, and North Korea opposing the resolution.

The one that I will never understand, the one that makes me ashamed, the one that belies the reason the U.N. was brought into being in San Francisco in 1945, the one that betrays every ideal of international law was the U.S. vote.