Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the horrific sights of Bucha, the General Assembly took a vote on suspending Russia from the Human Rights Council. Two-thirds voted to support the resolution; the votes were 93 in favour, 24 against, and 58 abstained. However, if we were to look at those who voted against:
It is clear that despite a fair amount of criticising of Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Central Asian countries still stand with Russia. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan – all voted against the resolution. This can be explained by Russia’s threat to treat those that would abstain from voting as “unfriendly nations” with bilateral consequences for such actions. Unsurprisingly, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan did not want to take any chances.