Russia on Tuesday vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that would have kept a key border crossing from Turkey to north-west Syria open for life saving aid for another nine months until March 2024.
Thirteen of the Security Council’s members voted in favour of keeping open the Bab Al Hawa border crossing – the main conduit for aid into the rebel-held north of the country – for nine months. China abstained.
As a permanent member of the UN’s top panel, Russia has veto power. It was set to approve a six-month extension but the Security Council wanted a longer period to ensure the crossing is kept open throughout the winter.
The mandate for the operation, which has been delivering aid including food, medicine and shelter since 2014, expired on Monday.
Authorisation is needed because Syrian authorities did not agree to the operation. In 2022 and 2020, the mandate for the operation ran out, but was renewed a day later.
Russia’s UN envoy, Vasily Nebenzya, accused western countries of a “complete disregard for the interests of the Syrian people and the intent to artificially provoke Russia into using the veto”.—agencies
