Bangladesh, among four south Asian countries, abstains from voting on the Ukraine issue in the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.
The vote on the “Aggression against Ukraine” resolution was 141-5, with 35 abstentions.
Belarus, Syria, North Korea and Eritrea joined Russia in opposing the measure.
Unlike Security Council resolutions, General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, but they do have clout in reflecting international opinion.
Under special emergency session rules, a resolution needs the approval of two-thirds of those countries voting, and abstentions don’t count.
Few days ago, Bangladesh urged for restraint by all parties and to immediately resume diplomatic efforts and dialogue in order to settle all disputes by peaceful means, and refrain from taking any action that may endanger international peace and security.
"Bangladesh expresses its full support and confidence in the good offices of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, and calls upon him to undertake all efforts to initiate dialogue with a view to ending the hostilities and military operations in Ukraine," said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in its statement.
In its main annual session on March 2, 2022, in Geneva, the UN Human Rights Council Ukrainian Ambassador Yevheniia Filipenko has led the push to show off which of the warring parties enjoys international support.
The Conference on Disarmament is also hosting high-level meetings, and thanks to the recent lifting of Covid measures, many ministers and ambassadors have gathered in-person to see the diplomatic rallying around Ukraine on display.
Standing ovation
When Ukraine's deputy foreign minister Emine Aiiarovna Dzhaparova addressed the rights council Wednesday via video message, her speech was greeted with a standing ovation in the room.
Her reception stood in stark contrast to how diplomats greeted two video addresses by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday -- by leaving the room.
Russia's top diplomat had been scheduled to come to Geneva to address both the UN-linked disarmament body and the UN Human Rights Council in person on Tuesday.
But he cancelled at the last minute, with Moscow blaming "anti-Russian sanctions" imposed by EU countries, relieving him of the embarrassment of watching the diplomats turning their backs on him and following Filipenko out of the room.
"Thank you very much for this wonderful show of support to Ukrainians who are fighting for their independence," she told the crowd gathered around a large Ukrainian flag outside the rights council chamber, where Lavrov's speech continued for only a scattering of remaining ambassadors.
Earlier, diplomats had also filed out as a separate Lavrov address played before a meeting of the Conference on Disarmament, a body created in 1979 to try to stem the Cold War arms race.
Urgent debate
Filipenko has, with broad support, meanwhile secured an urgent debate before the rights council on Thursday on the abuses committed in the Ukraine conflict.
During that debate, countries will consider a draft resolution presented by Kyiv calling for an international investigation into alleged abuses committed in the conflict, dating back to 2014 when the Kremlin annexed Crimea.
Russia's bid to block the debate received support from only four of the council's 47 members, in addition to itself: China, Eritrea, Cuba and Venezuela.
Efforts are now underway to try to convince the 13 countries, many of them from Africa, who abstained in the vote on holding the debate to back the resolution.
A number of Western diplomats have meanwhile been busy tweeting out their support for Ukraine.
US Ambassador Sheba Crocker for instance shared images of the Lavrov walkouts, as well as of a friendly dinner with Filipenko, receiving "likes" from French and British colleagues.
Russia's mission meanwhile has been struggling to keep up, as it tweets and retweets Moscow's arguments to justify its invasion.
And on Friday, Russian Ambassador Gennady Gatilov will host a rare press conference and likely try to make Moscow's case in person.
