Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzia, on Friday accused the United States of being the only country in the world, other than Israel, to block calls for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting, Nebenzia said that “unfortunately, our many efforts with our supporters to adopt a UN Security Council resolution calling for a comprehensive ceasefire, even for humanitarian purposes, are facing strong opposition from the United States.”
He added that “this approach by Washington is based on its biased and selfish position aimed at monopolizing the Middle East settlement process and providing cover for all the actions of its ally in the region, Israel.”
Nebenzia said that “the United States is essentially the only country in the world, other than Israel, that is currently standing against the global consensus that there is no alternative to a halt to the fighting in Gaza.”
He recalled that the UN Security Council has only been able to adopt two weak resolutions since the escalation in Gaza, neither of which called for a ceasefire, due to the US position.
“As a result, only because of the United States, the UN Security Council, the main body of the United Nations for maintaining international peace and security, has been unable to fulfill its direct tasks for three months,” he said.
Nebenzia pointed out that “this unacceptable situation reveals the double standards of our American colleagues towards crises in Gaza and other regions of the world.”
He stressed the importance of working to restore the prospects for a political settlement in the Middle East on the basis of international law and the known resolutions that call for the establishment of a Palestinian state with the borders of 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital, living in peace and security with Israel.
