RUSSIA has lost its membership of the ruling council of the International Maritime Organization following a vote by member states on Friday.

Russia received 80 votes in its re-election bid to the IMO Council’s Category A, while Liberia received 132 votes to become the newest member of the council.

The Ukrainian delegation called on member states to remove Russia from the IMO Council ahead of the vote, arguing that “a state which openly disregards the UN Charter should not remain in the governing body of a UN specialised organisation”. 

The Russian delegation said before the vote that the country had worked to strengthen the IMO to support its re-election bid, adding that Russia deserved to be in Category A to ensure balanced geographical representation.

The IMO Council is the executive organ responsible for supervising the work of the organisation. It has 10 Category A members, while Category B and C have 10 and 20, respectively.

Category A members of the IMO Council for 2024-2025 are Greece, Italy, Japan, China, Norway, Panama, South Korea, the UK, the US and Liberia.

Russia opted not to apply for a membership in Category B.

Bangladesh, Finland and Peru became the newest members of the IMO Council's Category C. 

Lloyd’s List reported in February that member states encouraged Liberia to bid for a spot in Category A to displace Russia, which has become a pariah in much of the UN system after its incursion into Ukraine.

The move is largely symbolic as Russia can continue to participate in IMO meetings, but it is still a diplomatic blow. 

Russia was removed from the governing body of the IMO’s aviation sister agency, the International Civil Aviation Organisation, in October last year.