Payments to opponents
19 countries that do not support the UN resolution condemning Russia will receive 12.8 billion yen from Japan – more than 91 million dollars, informs NHK channel.
The article states that the payments will be sent to the states as non-refundable funds. That’s why the Japanese Ministry decided to give these countries an “opportunity to vote against government policy this year.” It is also stated that this money will be allocated as official state development assistance (Official development assistance, ODA).
In descending order of the amount of money, Laos will be 2.9 billion yen (about $20.5 million), Vietnam 1.7 billion yen (over 12 million dollars), Iran 1.6 billion yen ($ 11.3 million), and the total amount It will be 12.8 billion yen.
The authors of the article noted that the Ministry of Finance of Japan asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs “to play an important role in maintaining the peace and stability of the international community.” The Treasury called for the “strategic” use of official development assistance to increase Japan’s influence in these countries.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan announced that they plan to provide support to 19 countries through international organizations and local non-governmental organizations. The State Department said it was “evaluating the appropriateness” of providing assistance “in each particular case”.
According to open sources, the purpose of Japanese official government development assistance is to support developing countries, primarily the economy. Since the 50s of the last century, funds can be directed to grants, loans and contributions to international organizations. Technology transfer can also help.
ODA’s founding documents state that the amount of payment can be increased (for example, for the development of a market economy and democracy) or decreased (for example, due to nuclear weapons tests or human rights violations).
Official Development Assistance is the equivalent of the Marshall Plan, which was American aid to rebuild Europe after the Second World War.
anti-Russian decision
Following the start of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, Japan took a series of sanctions against Moscow. Tokyo’s restrictions currently apply to 903 Russian citizens, 280 Russian companies and organizations, and 11 banks.
On November 14, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling on Russia to hold Ukraine accountable for violating international law.
Representatives of 94 countries out of 181 attending the meeting voted for the resolution. 14 countries opposed, including Russia, China, Belarus, North Korea, Iran, Syria. 73 countries, including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, abstained.
According to the AP, the resolution’s co-sponsors spoke Canada, Guatemala, the Netherlands and Ukraine.
Vasily Nebenzya, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN, said the UN General Assembly resolution was “legally invalid”.
“(Decision – socialbites.ca) is watertight, legally void and an attempt to legalize what is illegal in terms of current international law. “At the same time, the co-authors could not have understood that the adoption of such a decision would have ramifications that could have been a boomerang for them.”
According to Kommersant, unlike UN Security Council resolutions, the documents of the World Organization’s General Assembly are not legally binding.
On November 15, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the decision as the “officialization of the robbery” of Russia’s gold and foreign currency reserves. According to him, the Russian Federation is “against” this document.
Source: Gazeta
Emma Matthew is a political analyst for “Social Bites”. With a keen understanding of the inner workings of government and a passion for politics, she provides insightful and informative coverage of the latest political developments.