Russia is lobbying for a secret vote instead of a public one when the 193-member UN General Assembly next week considers whether to condemn Moscow’s move to annex four partially occupied regions of Ukraine after staged mock referendums, Reuters reported.

Ukraine and allies condemned the vote in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia as illegal and coercive. The UN General Assembly resolution, drafted by the West, condemns Russia’s “so-called illegal referendums” and “attempted illegal annexation” of the territories where the vote took place.

“This is a clearly politicized and provocative event aimed at deepening divisions in the General Assembly and further dividing members,” Russia’s UN ambassador Vasyl Nebenzia wrote in a letter to UN states seen by Reuters.

He argued that the secret ballot was necessary because Western lobbying meant “it can be very difficult if positions are expressed publicly”. Diplomats said the General Assembly would likely hold a public vote rather than a secret one.

Last week, Russia rejected a similar resolution in the 15-member Security Council.

“If the international community does not react, there may be claims that no one is paying attention,” European Union Ambassador to the United Nations Olof Skoog said on Wednesday, warning that other countries cannot be given the opportunity to do the same or admit what they have done to Russia.

He said the EU was consulting widely with UN member states ahead of the vote, which is likely to take place on Wednesday.

However, Russia does not fully control any of the four provinces it claims to have annexed, and Ukrainian forces have reclaimed thousands of square kilometers of territory since early September.