Russia, China Veto US Ceasefire Resolution For Gaza
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
NEW YORK/JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Russia and China have vetoed a U.S. draft United Nations Security Council resolution calling for an “immediate and sustained ceasefire” in Gaza because it included “the release of all remaining hostages” held by Hamas.
Eleven Council members voted for the resolution early Friday at the United Nations in New York.
However, Russia, China, and Algeria voted against it, while Guyana abstained. As permanent Security Council members, the Russian and Chinese votes counted as vetoes.
These countries demanded an “unconditional” ceasefire between Israeli forces and Hamas despite the Islamist group’s October 7 attack on Israel that killed 1,200 people, triggering the war.
They objected to linking the ceasefire to a hostage deal and condemnation of Hamas.
This was the fourth time since the war began in October that the Security Council failed to agree on a resolution calling for a ceasefire.
It meant a significant setback for the United States, which had been working for “weeks” on gaining support for its draft resolution, said sources familiar with the talks.
DEMANDING SUPPORT
The vetoes came after Moscow and Beijing agreed with Houthi rebels, who support Hamas, on safe passage of their vessels in the Red Sea.
Houthis pledged not to attack Russia’s and China’s ships in the Red Sea in exchange for their support in international institutions, such as by blocking resolutions aimed at the Islamist group in the U.N. Security Council.
The Houthis say they will only halt their missile and drone strikes on vessels linked to Israel and its allies if the Jewish nation halts attacks against Hamas in Gaza.
Friday’s failure to agree on a ceasefire resolution in the Security Council also extended a five-month impasse in the international body over the Israel-Hamas war in which thousands were killed.
The diplomatic wrangling in New York came as negotiators from Israel, Hamas, Egypt, Qatar, and the U.S. were trying to reach a hostage deal in Doha.
The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Bill Burns was due to join the talks on Friday, along with the Qatari prime minister and the intelligence chiefs of Israel and Egypt.
Shortly before the U.N. Security Council convened, U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken met in Israel with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet to express Washington’s concerns about the war.
Blinken reportedly warned Netanyahu that Israel’s security and its place in the world are in peril due to Israel’s strategy in Gaza, and “you might not realize it until it’s too late.”
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