Ukraine Refuses to Vote for UN Resolution on a New World Map: 'Equal Earth' Projection Depicts Crimea as Detached from the Country

Ukraine's delegation to the United Nations refused to support a General Assembly resolution providing for a switch to the new "Equal Earth" map projection for depicting the world. The reason was the specific visualization of Ukraine's temporarily occupied territories, in particular Crimea, which, in Kyiv's assessment, violates the principles of state sovereignty and territorial integrity. This is reported by RBC-Ukraine, citing the official explanation from the Ukrainian delegation and a statement by MP Kira Rudyk.

Principled Support for the Idea — But Not This Projection

The Ukrainian delegation emphasized that Kyiv has no objection to the main idea of the resolution — a more accurate and scientifically grounded depiction of the sizes of continents, especially Africa and other regions of the Global South, which are visually shrunk on the traditional Mercator projection (1569). The problem, as the diplomats explained, lies in the specific "Equal Earth" projection enshrined in the text of the document: on it, the parts of Ukraine occupied by Russia, including Crimea, are depicted in a way that effectively detaches them from the country's mainland. The delegation noted that such a depiction contradicts all previously adopted General Assembly resolutions on Ukraine's territorial integrity and the principle of non-recognition of the attempted annexation of Crimea.

Attempts at Compromise and a Warning About a "Pandora's Box"

According to the Ukrainian side, Kyiv attempted to reach a compromise wording with the authors of the resolution that would eliminate the disputed depiction, but the negotiations ended without result. The delegation warned that an attempt to correct a historical injustice in the depiction of continents should not create new problems on the political map of the world. An ambiguous interpretation of the text, they said, could "open Pandora's box," effectively contributing to the distortion of states' borders and sovereignty. This is precisely why the Ukrainian delegation called on other UN member states to take the issue seriously and to weigh the risks when voting.

Reaction in the Ukrainian Parliament

MP Kira Rudyk reacted sharply to the situation. In her public statement she wrote: "Ukraine could not support the UN resolution on a new world map, because it depicts occupied Crimea in a way that detaches it from Ukraine. In 2026, the UN should not need to be reminded: Crimea is Ukraine." In the illustration published on social media, the new map shows the peninsula highlighted as a separate geographic object labeled "CRIMEA," which, in Kyiv's view, entrenches the illegal annexation in the cartographic discourse.

Context: Why the UN Is Changing the World Map

The resolution is the result of a long-running initiative by African countries, which pointed out that the Mercator projection, used in most atlases and educational materials since the 16th century, significantly distorts the ratio of territorial areas: Africa and other regions of the Global South look considerably smaller than they actually are. Proponents of the switch to "Equal Earth" stressed that the issue goes beyond pure cartography: the visual diminishment of Africa over the centuries has influenced the perception of the continent's importance in world politics and economics. The UN General Assembly supported this initiative; however, as follows from the statement of the Ukrainian delegation, the vote on the specific text of the resolution with the enshrined projection caused disagreements. It is noted that US President Donald Trump also opposed the new projection, although the motives behind his position are not detailed in open sources.

Contradictory Data

Open sources contain an inconsistency regarding exactly what stage the document is at. On the one hand, it is reported that the UN General Assembly has already "supported the African countries' initiative" for a more accurate reflection of the sizes of continents, which could be interpreted as the adoption of the resolution. On the other hand, the Ukrainian delegation frames its position as a refusal to support the specific text with the "Equal Earth" projection, and also calls on other delegations to "weigh the risks of voting" — which suggests that the vote is yet to take place or is at its final stage. Thus, it is unclear whether the resolution has already been adopted by a majority without Ukraine's support, or whether the voting process has not yet been completed. Different outlets (RBC-Ukraine, Ukrnews, Pravda.com.ua) report the event with slight differences in chronology and wording, which requires additional verification against the transcript of the General Assembly session.