The United States has vetoed a UN Security Council resolution for a ceasefire in Israel’s war in Gaza on Wednesday.
A senior US official accused council members of cynically rejecting attempts at reaching a compromise.
The 15-member council voted on a resolution put forward by its 10 non-permanent members in a meeting that called for an “immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire” and separately demand the release of hostages.
Only the US voted against, using its veto as a permanent council member to block the resolution.
The American official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, said the US would only support a resolution that explicitly calls for the immediate release of hostages as part of a ceasefire.
“As we stated many times before, we just can’t support an unconditional ceasefire that does not call for the immediate release of hostages,” the official said.
Ahead of the vote on a ceasefire resolution on Wednesday, Britain put forward new language that the US would have supported as a compromise, but that was rejected, the US official said.
The E10
Some of the council’s ten elected members (E10) were more interested in bringing about a US veto than compromising on the resolution, the official said, accusing Russia and China of encouraging those members.
“China kept demanding ‘stronger language,’ and Russia appeared to be pulling strings with various (elected) 10 members,” the official said. “This really does undercut the narrative that this was an organic reflection of the E10, and there’s some sense that some E10 members regret that those responsible for the drafting allowed the process to be manipulated for what we consider to be cynical purposes.”
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