United Nations, March 6 (RHC)-- The United States proposed a new UN Security Council resolution regarding Syria on Tuesday, which was discussed behind closed doors by the five permanent Council members -- the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France.  Morocco, the only Arab representative on the Security Council, also met to discuss the draft resolution.

Russia and China have vetoed two Council resolutions, in October and last month, saying they were unbalanced and only demanded that the government stop attacks, not the opposition.  Moscow, which has taken the lead, accused Western powers of fueling the conflict by backing the rebels.

The new draft resolution reportedly tries to take a more balanced approach in an effort to get Russia and China on board, but it was unclear if the new language would be sufficient to satisfy them.  According to reports from the United Nations, Western supporters of the resolution do not want to formally introduce the U.S. draft if it's going to face a third veto.

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov defended his country's position on Syria and told reporters in Moscow on Tuesday that the UN Security Council should "seek compromise, stimulate negotiations and a political process."

After Tuesday's closed discussion of the U.S. draft, Russia's UN ambassador had no comment.  China's UN Ambassador Li Baodong, asked about a new resolution, said: "We're still working on that."

Share this article