Russia and China on Tuesday vetoed a United Nations resolution that would have threatened sanctions against Syria if it didn’t immediately halt its harsh military crackdown. European members of the Security Council had attempted to pass the sanctions by watering down the language three times, only to still have it defeated 9–2, with four abstentions. Russia’s foreign minister called the resolution “unacceptable,” because it only threatened sanctions and did not call on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to start talks with the opposition.
