United Nations: Russia and China vetoed Thursday a US resolution in the UN Security Council on addressing the crisis in Venezuela, but a counter-proposal from Moscow did not win enough votes.
The failure to take action on the two competing drafts laid bare divisions among world powers over the way forward in Venezuela, which is mired in a political standoff and an economic meltdown.
The proposed US text – which called for new presidential elections in Venezuela and unimpeded deliveries of humanitarian aid – won the required nine votes at the 15-member council, but Moscow and Beijing joined forces to block it.
Resolutions at the council, which are legally binding, must garner nine votes to be adopted, with no vetoes from the five permanent members – Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.
Russia’s draft resolution – which urged a settlement ‘through peaceful means’ and insisted that all humanitarian aid be agreed by Maduro’s government – won only four votes: Russia, China, South Africa and Equatorial Guinea.
Seven countries including the United States, European countries and Peru opposed the Russian measure and there were four abstentions.
Battered by economic collapse, Venezuela is embroiled into a major political crisis with opposition leader Juan Guaido declaring himself interim president in January and asserting that President Nicolas Maduro was no longer legitimate.
The United States is leading a push for recognition of Guaido, who heads the National Assembly. He is now backed by more than 50 countries.
After the double vetoes, US envoy for Venezuela Elliott Abrams took an implicit swipe at Russia and China, lamenting countries ‘continue to shield Maduro and his cronies and prolong the suffering of the Venezuelan people’.
Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia meanwhile accused the United States of putting forward a text that was ‘written for regime change, disguised as care for people’. “We have all seen this already in Libya, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan,” the ambassador stated.
Maduro has accused the United States of using aid as a political tool aimed at overthrowing him, and blames US sanctions for the economic turmoil.
The crisis turned violent over the weekend when four people died in clashes at Venezuela’s borders during an attempt led by Guaido to bring in humanitarian aid from Colombia and Brazil.
AFP