‘Syria veto to avert bloodshed’
China’s official Xinhua news agency said yesterday Beijing and
Moscow’s veto of a UN Security Council resolution on Syria was designed
to prevent more “turbulence and fatalities” in the violence-hit state.
Russia and China’s Saturday veto of a resolution condemning Syria’s
crackdown on protests has sparked an international outcry, and came just
hours after reports that troops in the city of Homs had killed hundreds
of civilians.
Russia’s UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin justified the veto by saying
the proposed resolution “sent an unbalanced signal to the Syrian
parties”. His Chinese counterpart Li Baodong said pushing through such
“a vote when parties are still seriously divided ... will not help
maintain the unity and authority of the Security Council, or help
resolve the issue.” In a comment piece, Xinhua said the veto -- the
second by the two countries since the start of violence in the Middle
Eastern state a year ago -- “was aimed at further seeking peaceful
settlement of the chronic Syrian crisis.”
AFP |