UAE not taking sides in Ukraine conflict, favors negotiations – official

UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash is seen during preparatory meeting for the GCC, Arab and Islamic summits in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, May 29, 2019. REUTERS / Waleed Ali / File Photo

Feb 27 (Reuters) – The United Arab Emirates wants to encourage a political solution in the Ukraine conflict and taking sides would only encourage violence, a senior UAE official said on Sunday.

The comment, posted by Anwar Gargash on Twitter, comes after the UAE abstained to vote on Friday on a draft United Nations Security Council resolution deploring Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. It did not pass because of Russia’s veto.

The UAE “believes that taking sides would only lead to more violence,” said Gargash, the diplomatic adviser to UAE President Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan. read more.

“The UAE has a firm position regarding the United Nations, international law and the sovereignty of states, rejecting military solutions,” he said.

“In the Ukrainian crisis, our priority is to encourage all parties to resort to diplomatic action and to negotiate to find a political solution.”

Reporting by Ahmed Tolba, writing by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Angus MacSwan

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