Russia, China veto UN resolution on Syria

Prepared by the European members of the UN Security Council and supported by the US, the draft resolution stipulated that the Assad's regime should face the possibility of tough sanctions if it fails to stop its crackdown on opposition within 30 days since the adoption of the resolution.

The resolution was rejected late Tuesday by a vote of 9-2 with four abstentions. Russia, which stands firmly against any mention of sanctions citing the example of Libya where the NATO countries largely overstepped the UN mandate in a military operation
against Muammar Gaddafi's regime, said the text of the document was "unacceptable" despite several changes to the draft.

Russian envoy to the UN Vitaly Churkin said after the session of the UN Security Council that the draft document reflected a "confrontational" approach toward the resolution of the political crisis in Syria.

"The document did not contain provisions on the unacceptability of an external military intervention," Churkin said.

The UN says over 2,000 people have died since the start of the protests in March. On Sep 21, US President Barack Obama urged the UN Security Council to impose new sanctions against Syria over its crackdown on opposition protesters.