The United States was the only vote against, but as one of the body’s five permanent members it counted as a veto….reports Asian Lite News
The US veto on a UN Security Council resolution calling for a “humanitarian pause” in the Israel-Hamas war will have “monstruous consequences,” Russia said on Thursday.
Twelve out of 15 Council members voted in favor of the resolution put forward by Brazil, which also condemned the “heinous terrorist attacks by Hamas.”
The United States was the only vote against, but as one of the body’s five permanent members it counted as a veto.
“In the context of a standoff that is deepening and risks spilling over the borders of the Middle East region and taking on a confessional dimension, the consequences of such a step are monstruous,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Moscow said it was “disappointing” that a resolution that could have contributed to “stopping the escalation of tensions and reducing violence against civilians” was not adopted.
The US veto “clearly demonstrates Washington’s true aspiration for the region,” the statement said.
“Every day of delay means not only a rapid increase in the number of dead and wounded, but also the continuation of the suffering of civilians who have become prisoners of the blockaded enclave” of Gaza, it added.
The foreign ministry accused Washington of opposing “all humanitarian initiatives from the beginning” and said the Israel-Hamas conflict reflected “the failure of American policy” in the region, which “sparked the catastrophic current escalation.”
“The right to self-defense does not mean having a license for mass and indiscriminate reprisals,” the ministry added, in a criticism aimed at Israel.
Russia delivers 27 tonnes of food supplies to Gaza
Russia has delivered 27 tonnes of food supplies for civilians in the Gaza Strip set to be transferred from Egypt, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday.
Taking to X, Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, “27 tonnes of food supplies delivered by Russia’s EMERCOM and transferred to the Egyptian Red Crescent for distribution among the people of the Gaza Strip in need. Every bit helps.”
Russia’s Deputy Minister Ilya Denisov in a statement said, “A special plane has taken off from the airport at Ramenskoye near Moscow for El-Arish in Egypt. The Russian humanitarian aid will be handed over to the Egyptian Red Crescent to be sent to the Gaza Strip.” He added the aid comprised “wheat, sugar, rice (and) pasta.”
Earlier on Tuesday, the office of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared details of his telephonic conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying that the former briefed him on the ongoing counter-offensive against Hamas, following the October 7 terror attacks.
It posted further that Israeli PM Netanyahu told the Russian President that the Israeli forces won’t relent till they “eliminate Hamas”.
“The Prime Minister made it clear that Israel had been attacked by brutal and abhorrent murderers, had gone to war determined and united, and would not stop until it had destroyed Hamas’s military and governing capabilities,” the Israeli PM’s office posted further.