Russia and China on Friday, March 22 vetoed a US-led draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on a ceasefire in Gaza, with Moscow accusing Washington of a "hypocritical spectacle" that does not pressure Israel.
The United States, Israel's main ally which has vetoed previous ceasefire calls, put forward the resolution which for the first time would have supported "the imperative of an immediate and sustained ceasefire" and condemned the October 7 attack by Hamas. The draft resolution linked a ceasefire to ongoing talks, led by Qatar with support from the United States and Egypt, to halt the war in return for Hamas releasing hostages.
Russia and China exercised their vetoes, Algeria also voted against and Guyana abstained. The other 11 Security Council members voted in favor, including permanent members France and Britain. Russia's ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, said that the US was doing nothing to rein in Israel, mocking Washington for speaking of a ceasefire after "Gaza has been virtually wiped off the face of the Earth."
"We have observed a typical hypocritical spectacle," said Nebenzia. "The American product is exceedingly politicized, with the sole purpose being to play to voters and throw them a bone in the form of some kind of a mention of a ceasefire in Gaza," he said.
The resolution will "ensure the impunity of Israel, whose crimes are not even assessed in the draft." The draft had stopped short of explicitly demanding that Israel immediately end its campaign in Gaza. In the delicate language of Security Council resolutions, the draft "determines" the "imperative" of an "immediate and sustained" ceasefire.
China's representative to the UN, Zhang Jun, said the draft "dodged the most central issue, that of a ceasefire" through its "ambiguous" language. "Nor does it even provide an answer to the question of realizing a ceasefire in the short term," he said.
On a visit to Israel, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Russia and China "cynically vetoed" a resolution that had "strong support." "I think we were trying to show the international community a sense of urgency about getting a ceasefire," Blinken told reporters.
The UNSC may, later on Friday, consider another resolution with a more explicit call for an immediate ceasefire. The US ambassador, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, indicated opposition to this resolution, saying it would jeopardize the ongoing talks for the release of hostages. Speaking before the vote on the US draft resolution, Thomas-Greenfield said, "By adopting the resolution before us, we can put pressure on Hamas to accept the deal on the table."
She later called the Russian and Chinese vetoes "not just cynical" but also "petty." "Russia and China simply did not want to vote for a resolution that was penned by the United States," she said. "Let's be honest – for all the fiery rhetoric, we all know that Russia and China are not doing anything diplomatically to advance a lasting peace or to meaningfully contribute to the humanitarian response effort," she added.
Russia, China and Algeria said that the resolution should aim to stop Israel from a threatened offensive in the Rafah, where more than one million Palestinians have sheltered. The United States has publicly opposed the operation, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Friday to go into Rafah even without US support after he met Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who promoted the now-vetoed resolution on his latest regional tour.
French President Emmanuel Macron, speaking in Brussels immediately after the vetoes, said France would keep pushing for an alternative resolution for a ceasefire. "The Security Council must call for an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian access," Macron told reporters in Brussels, promising to resume work on a planned French resolution "along with our US, European and Arab partners."
"What's important to note is that the United States has changed its position, and shown its will to defend, very clearly now, a ceasefire," Macron said. "For a long time, the Americans were reticent. That reticence is now gone. There is an alignment on the basis of our text," Macron said. France has been working on its proposal with Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and several other European countries, he said. He was hopeful its diplomatic outreach in the region "may persuade China and Russia not to use their veto."