The United States on Wednesday abstained from co-sponsoring a joint statement at the World Trade Organization condemning Russia's aggression in Ukraine, a diplomatic source and a Geneva trade official told Reuters.

It is the first time the U.S. has not supported the statement that has been issued each year since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, in another signal of its closer ties to Russia.

More than 40 WTO members agreed to the statement, which was shared at the Ukraine trade review session at the WTO. They included the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.

The U.S mission to the United Nations in Geneva did not reply when asked for comment.