The UN Security Council did not pass two draft resolutions on Syria by the US and Russia.
The US draft resolution received 12 votes in favor, but was not passed due to Russia's veto, while the Russian draft resolution did not have the minimum nine votes in favor.
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Panorama of a UN Security Council meeting on Syria, in New York (USA) on April 4. (Source: THX/TTXVN) |
According to a VNA reporter at the United Nations, the US draft resolution received 12 votes in favor, but was not passed due to Russia's veto. China abstained from voting on the US draft.
Russia's draft resolution received six votes in favor (including China's), but fell short of the nine votes needed to pass.
The main difference between the two resolutions is that the US text calls for an investigation to determine who carried out chemical weapons attacks in Syria, while the Russian text requires investigators to report their findings to the Security Council, which will then draw conclusions.
Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia accused the US of "inventing the above resolution" as a "pretext" to justify future action against Syria.
He said that Russia's veto is beneficial to world peace and security, protects the international rule of law, and ensures that the Security Council is not dragged into the US adventure.
Meanwhile, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said that the US draft resolution "is just the minimum the Security Council can do to respond to the attacks" on April 7.
The Security Council votes took place as US President Donald Trump warned Damascus would "pay a heavy price" for what the West said was the use of nerve agents in an attack in Douma, Syria's Eastern Ghouta region, that killed at least 40 people on April 7.
Mr Trump has postponed a planned trip to Latin America this weekend to focus on dealing with Syria.
International chemical weapons experts will travel to Douma to investigate the attack while the US and Western powers consider military action to punish Damascus./.
