Since Russia and China
vetoed a key resolution critical of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's violent
repression of the ongoing 11-month old civilian uprising, there has been plenty
of public outrage directed at the two permanent members of the Security Council
who stood defiant against an overwhelming majority.
U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said the United States was
"disgusted" over the outcome of Saturday's vote while
Secretary-General Ban Ki- moon was "greatly disappointed" at the
inability of the Security
Council to speak in one voice.
A visibly angry German Ambassador Peter Wittig told
reporters the two vetoes were a "disgrace".
"A travesty," chimed in U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton, while Moroccan Ambassador Mohammed Loulichki, who piloted the
failed resolution, was "extremely frustrated" at the outcome.
The vote favouring the resolution was 13 out of 15, but the
Security Council failed to adopt it because of the double vetoes.
In reality, both Russia and China were protecting a
steadfast ally - and their political, economic and military interests in Syria
- when they cast their vetoes against the resolution.
What Russia and China did is no different from what the
United States has been doing with monotonous regularity - protecting the state
of Israel against Security Council sanctions, strictures and outright
condemnation of illegal settlements and political repression of Palestinians in
the occupied territories.
Perhaps Clinton may have been right when she said the
Security Council has been "neutered" - but not just by Russia and
China, as she argued, but also by the United States, Britain and France.
Stephen Zunes, professor of politics and chair of Middle
Eastern Studies at the University of San Francisco, told IPS Washington has
vetoed over 42 Security Council resolutions critical of Israeli violations of
international humanitarian law, including suspected war crimes, and has
otherwise blocked passage of scores of others.
"Why all this sanctimonious talk about the Russian and
Chinese moral failure?" he said.
Asked if the Security Council has lost its credibility
because the five veto-wielding permanent members (P5) - the United States,
Britain, France, China and Russia - continue to protect their own national
interests and their allies, right |