Moscow on Wednesday defended its decision to veto several resolutions on Syria at the UN Security Council.
“It is wrong to think that the use of veto is an indication that the United Nations is in crisis,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.
Moscow and Beijing have exercised their veto power to uphold the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, he stressed.
“These purposes and principles include respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a state and the obligation not to interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign states,” he said.
Lavrov reiterated Moscow’s position on Syria, namely that enforcement action should not be used against just one party to the conflict.
The Syrian conflict has claimed between 14,000 and 20,000 lives since March 2011, according to estimates by various opposition groups and the UN. The West is pushing for Assad’s ouster, while Russia and China are trying to prevent outside interference in the country, claiming the Assad regime and the opposition are both to blame for the bloodshed.
