Editor's note: Thomas W. Pauken II is the author of US vs China: From Trade War to Reciprocal Deal, a consultant on Asia-Pacific affairs and a geopolitical commentator. The article reflects the author's opinions and not necessarily those of CGTN.

Reviewing President Joe Biden's statement on the United Nations vote that suspended Russia from the Human Rights Council (HRC), one is left wondering if TikTok influencers wrote the public document. Going by the language and logic, it could have been drafted by non-professional diplomats or inexperienced government officials.

The first paragraph lacks dignity and gravitas. Here's what it says:

"I applaud the overwhelming vote today in the General Assembly of the United Nations to kick Russia off the UNHRC. This is a meaningful step by the international community further demonstrating how [Vladimir] Putin's war has made Russia an international pariah."

Is the phrase "to kick Russia off" appropriate? Consider the fact that sovereign governments from around the world will translate the White House statement into their native languages. For people unfamiliar with the idiom, it could connote violence.

Mocking Russia shows U.S. weakness

Describing Russia as an "international pariah" will accomplish nothing on the diplomatic front if Washington desires to end Putin's "special military operation" in Ukraine. People engaged in silly name-calling and taunts simply demonstrate their incapacity to act as adults.

We should also note the so-called "overwhelming vote" claimed by the Biden administration. The UN General Assembly voted on April 7 to suspend Russia's membership to the UNHRC, with 93 votes in favor, 24 against, and 58 abstaining. Considering the General Assembly has 193 member states in total, 93 votes in favor do not look "overwhelming".

Biden's statement also pledged to "increase the pressure on Russia's economy, and isolate Russia on the international stage". However, such steps will not lead to a viable diplomatic path to resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The U.S. economic sanctions against Russia should not be taken lightly. Russia is the world's largest country in territorial size, rich in natural resources and a major exporter of oil, gas and agricultural products. Therefore, the sanctions could result in worldwide energy and food shortages, as well as increase the likelihood of a global economic recession. It's understandable that a high number of nations chose to abstain due to such concerns.

Rushing to judge without due process

The UNHRC has 47 members. Russia was invited in January 2021 to join as one of the 15 nations elected by the General Assembly to serve three-year terms.

Russia is the second nation to be ousted from the UNHRC after Libya in 2011. It's the first time a permanent member of the UN Security Council was suspended from the body.

Under the 2006 resolution that established the UNHRC, the UN General Assembly can suspend a member state if it commits gross and systematic violations of human rights. That's reasonable, but where's the due process? Russian troops stand accused of war crimes but Moscow has proclaimed its innocence. Gennady Kuzmin, Deputy Russian Ambassador to the UN, said, "We reject the untruthful allegations against us, based on stage events and widely-circulated fakes."

No formal UN investigation has proven Russia's guilt and the UN should have reviewed the evidence before rushing to judgement.

On the other hand, there are videos purportedly showing soldiers in Ukraine colors shooting a Russian prisoner of war in the head repeatedly. Such action is defined as a war crime but the UNHRC has not proposed to investigate, even though Human Rights Watch has launched their investigation.

Setting a dangerous precedent

Russia's expulsion from the UNHRC sets a dangerous precedent, since it gives the U.S., United Kingdom and European Union greater influence over the body and creates scenarios where other countries could be expelled simply for displeasing the Western powers.

The action will also aggravate the tensions between Moscow and Kyiv, "adding fuel to the fire," as China's Ambassador to the UN Zhang Jun said.

Zhang added, "Dealing with the membership of the HRC in such a way will set a new and dangerous precedent, further intensify the confrontations in the field of human rights, bring a greater impact on the UN governance system, and produce serious consequences."

Washington was seeking to score short-term political points with its UN resolution to suspend Russia from the UNHRC. But there's an old saying, "What goes around, comes around." In the long-term outlook, the U.S. did not achieve any productive result on the diplomatic stage.

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