Russia, China veto UN Council call for Syria action

Opening up bitter international divisions:

UNITED NATIONS: Russia and China on Tuesday vetoed a UN Security Council resolution threatening action against Syria's deadly crackdown on protests, opening up bitter international divisions over the Arab Spring.

Amid new deaths in Syria and new threats of individual sanctions, the veto sparked the outrage of European nations, which proposed the resolution, and the United States, which said the council had "utterly failed to address an urgent moral challenge."

Nine countries voted for the text which had called for "targeted measures" if President Bashar al-Assad pursues his clampdown, which the UN says has left at least 2,700 dead.

Russia and China voted against, killing the resolution because of their veto power as permanent council members. South Africa, India, Brazil and Lebanon abstained, reaffirming a divide in the 15-member body since NATO launched air strikes in Libya using UN resolutions to justify the action. Russia's UN envoy, Vitaly Churkin, said the European resolution was "based on a philosophy of confrontation." The threat of action was "unacceptable," he added.

Many opponents raised the air strikes in Libya and fears that it could be renewed in Syria to justify their votes. AFP