Press Release on the adoption of UNHRC Resolution entitled “Cooperation and assistance to Ukraine in the field of human rights”

Ukraine welcomes the adoption on 3 July 2015 by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) of the resolution entitled “Cooperation and assistance to Ukraine in the field of human rights”. From now on, the most authoritative international human rights body will be regularly hearing directly from the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on the findings of each periodic report of the UN Monitoring Mission on the human rights situation in Ukraine, including the temporarily occupied territories of Crimea and Sevastopol, as well as the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine.

By approving the resolution, the UNHRC has once again confirmed Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.

This resolution put forward by Ukraine has been adopted despite Russia’s obvious opposition. Having voted “against” the resolution the Russian Federation seems to want to prevent the world from learning the truth about the systematic and widespread violations of human rights in the occupied territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and Donbas, about the gray area of arbitrariness and impunity created by Russia.

This once again shows the hypocrisy and duplicity of Russia’s “concerns over the violations of human rights in Ukraine” that are being repeatedly voiced by the Russian delegation in the framework of the United Nations, including the Security Council.