Ukraine abstained from the UN General Assembly resolution adopting a new world map, because the map it endorses shows occupied Crimea in a lighter shade than the rest of Ukraine.

The resolution, tabled by Togo and carried as draft 80/L.104, commits the UN to the Equal Earth projection in place of the Mercator, on the argument that Mercator makes Africa look far smaller than it is. On the version circulated with the vote, Crimea is rendered in a distinctly lighter shade than mainland Ukraine. No comparable marking is applied to Russian-occupied parts of Georgia or Moldova.

A cartographic convention is not usually a diplomatic problem, and the UN has passed a series of resolutions since 2014 treating Crimea as Ukrainian territory under occupation. A UN map that shades it differently sets those two positions against each other in a document every member state has now voted on.

"Such a misinterpretation could open a Pandora's box, effectively facilitating abuses and distortions of the political map of the world," Ukraine's permanent mission to the UN said, adding that it supports correcting the historical distortions of scale but opposes cartographic breaches of the UN Charter and international law, the Kyiv Post reported.

Kira Rudik, the Ukrainian MP who leads the Golos party, put it more bluntly. "Ukraine could not support the UN resolution on a new world map because it depicts occupied Crimea in a way that separates it from Ukraine," she said. "In 2026, the UN should not need a reminder: Crimea is Ukraine."

What has irritated Kyiv most is that its allies did not notice. "Was everyone asleep at the UN Secretariat and at UN missions of European nations?" asked Yaroslav Trofimov, the Ukrainian-born journalist and author. "Nobody in France, UK, Germany, Canada, even Latvia, noticed that they are voting not just for a more accurate map projection of Africa but also for a map showing Crimea detached from Ukraine, in contravention of all previous UN resolutions?"

The resolution passed. Ukraine did not vote against it.