Russia and China vetoed the UN Security Council Resolution

Russia and China on 4 February 2012 vetoed the UN Security Council resolution for the second time in four months. The resolution condemns the Syrian regime’s crackdown on public uprising and calls upon President Bashar Al Assad to abide by the Arab League time-frame for political reforms in the country. 13 members of the 15-member Security Council, including India voted in favour of the resolution. The draft resolution was prepared by European Union and Arab nations and revised amidst stiff opposition by Russia. From the original draft several major demands were dropped. The time-frame for implementation of the resolution by Syria was increased from 15 days to 21 days.