Russia and China veto UN resolution on Syria

Russia and China veto UN resolution on Syria

Russia and China vetoed on Saturday a U.N. resolution that backed an Arab plan calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to quit, stalling global efforts to end his bloody crackdown on unrest after hundreds were reported killed in the city of Homs.

The high-level diplomatic setback came after world leaders and Syrian opposition activists accused Assad's forces of a massacre in a sustained shelling of Homs, the bloodiest episode in 11 months of upheaval in the pivotal Arab country.

Both countries joined in a double veto to bar a Western- and Arab-driven resolution at the U.N. Security Council endorsing the Arab League plan for Assad to hand power to a deputy to make way for a transition toward democracy.

The other 13 council members voted for the resolution that would have said the council "fully supports" the League plan aimed at stopping Syria's bloodshed, whose sectarian overtones threaten stability in the wider Middle East region.

Russia complained that the draft resolution was an improper and biased attempt at "regime change" in Syria, which is Moscow's sole remaining sphere of influence in the Middle East and an important destination for Russian arms exports.

With an eye to events in Homs, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice dispensed with the usual diplomatic courtesies and declared she was "disgusted" by the Russian-Chinese veto, adding that "any further bloodshed that flows will be on their hands."

Shortly before the Security Council voted, U.S. President Barack Obama denounced the "unspeakable assault" on Homs, demanded that Assad leave power immediately and called for U.N. action against Assad's "relentless brutality."

"Yesterday the Syrian government murdered hundreds of Syrian citizens, including women and children, in Homs through shelling and other indiscriminate violence, and Syrian forces continue to prevent hundreds of injured civilians from seeking medical help," Obama said in a statement. "Any government that brutalizes and massacres its people does not deserve to govern."

He and other Western and Arab leaders exerted unprecedented pressure on Assad's veto-wielding ally Russia to allow the Security Council to pass a resolution backing an Arab League call for Assad to relinquish his autocratic powers.

Second veto

But Russia, and China following Moscow's lead, weighed in to torpedo U.N. action on Syria for the second time in four months. In October, they vetoed a European-drafted resolution condemning Syria and threatening it with possible sanctions.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday it had not been possible to work constructively with Russia ahead of the vote, even though military intervention in Syria - fiercely opposed by Moscow - had been absolutely ruled out.

The uprising pits Syria's majority Sunni Muslims against Assad's minority Alawites, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam, who have dominated the country's power structure for decades.

After what U.S. officials called "vigorous" talks between Clinton and Sergei Lavrov, Moscow announced that its foreign minister and its foreign intelligence chief would fly to Syria Tuesday to meet Assad.

Reuters/Ugo