Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen on Friday said Bangladesh voted in favour of Ukraine demanding a halt to Russia's war in Ukraine on humanitarian ground.
"The main reason for the voting is the humanitarian cause. Bangladesh is well known all over the world as a humanitarian country," he told the reporters after attending a programme in the capital.
The non-binding resolution, drafted by Ukraine and its allies was adopted at the UN headquarters in New York on Thursday where 140 countries voted in favour, 38 abstained and five voted against the measure.
The vote came after the adoption of a similar non-binding resolution on March 2 that demanded Russia immediately ceases its use of force where Bangladesh abstained from voting along with its South Asian neighbours - India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Though Bangladesh voted in favour of Thursday's resolution, its three neighbours- India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka abstained from voting.
China remains abstained from voting in both the resolutions where the same five countries -- Russia, Syria, North Korea, Belarus and Eritrea -- voted against the resolution Thursday and March 2.
When asked whether Bangladesh shifted its position or not, Dr Momen said, Bangladesh's position remains the same as Dhaka is always for peace and against war.
The foreign minister said Bangladesh considered the March 2 resolution partisan and it would not be able to put an end to the war. So, we didn't vote that time".
He said Thursday's resolution was for the welfare of civilians. "We want the safety of tortured people and for that, we said yes," he said.
The minister said that the war would have drastic impacts on the third world countries’ development and economic activities like Bangladesh as all are members of an interdependent system.
"We know from experience that it is the ordinary people who suffer the most in any war," he added.
