Russia, China kill India-backed resolution on Syria

United Nations - As a UN Security Council draft resolution to pressure Syria failed after China and Russia voted against it, India said it backed the motion as it favoured resolving the crisis through a Syrian-led inclusive political process. US Ambassador Susan Rice said the United States was "disgusted" at the veto by Russia and China.

"Our support for the resolution is in accordance with our support for the efforts by the Arab League for a peaceful resolution of the crisis through a Syrian-led inclusive political process," India's Permanent Representative Hardeep Singh Puri told the Council Saturday.

The resolution intended to pressure Syria to end its months-long crackdown on anti-government demonstrators, he noted, "expressly rules out any measures under Article 42 of the Charter and calls for serious political dialogue between the Syrian government and the whole spectrum of the opposition under the auspices of the League of Arab States."

Asserting that "the leadership of Syria is a matter for the Syrian people to decide," Puri said: "It would be necessary for all opposition forces in Syria to peacefully engage in constructive dialogue with the authorities."

"We hope that this will create a new environment for peace and facilitate a political process," he said. "This political dialogue should build upon the political reforms already announced by the Syrian leadership with necessary changes so that they find acceptance among all sections of Syrian society."

India and 12 other members of Security Council members voted in favour of the resolution condemning Syria.

Ambassadors from three other permanent members of the council - the United States, France, and the United Kingdom - said they were furious at Russia and China for failing to halt the worsening, bloody violence that has consumed the Middle Eastern nation.

In a strongly-worded statement before the vote, US President Barack Obama said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has lost all legitimacy and that the international community "must work to protect the Syrian people from this abhorrent brutality."

He pointed the finger directly at al-Assad and what he called his "killing machine."

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the vote was a lost opportunity to halt the violence. The resolution would have demanded that al-Assad stop the killing and answer international calls aimed at finding a Syrian-led solution to the crisis.