The United Nations General Assembly approved the resolution entitled "Situation with human rights in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol", the UN News Center said.
The relevant document was backed by 67 UN member states, 26 countries voted against, including Uzbekistan, Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Bolivia, India, Kazakhstan, China, DPRK, Cuba, Serbia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and the Republic of South Africa, while 82 countries abstained
The text of the document states that the UN General Assembly affirms "that the seizure of Crimea by force is illegal and a violation of international law, and affirming also that those territories must be returned."
It also condemns politically motivated persecutions of citizens of Ukraine and calls on Russia to free all Ukrainians who are illegally detained in the occupied Crimea and Russian territory. Illegally imprisoned Ukrainian film director Oleh Sentsov, Crimean activist Volodymyr Balkuh and Crimean Tatars' human rights activist Emir-Huseyn Kuku are designated as political prisoners.
The UN General Assembly's draft resolution also condemns the "imposition of automatic Russian citizenship on protected persons in Crimea, which is contrary to international humanitarian law," and calls on Russia "to end the practice of compelling Crimean residents to serve in the armed or auxiliary forces of the Russian Federation, including through pressure or propaganda, and in particular ensure that Crimean residents are not compelled to participate in military operations of the Russian Federation," as well as in "illegal election campaigns."
