The Chinese government criticized the United States over the decision to use its veto on a United Nations ceasefire resolution for Gaza, a development that Beijing said would send the "wrong message."
China also said that the veto decision effectively gave a "green light to the continued slaughter" in the war-torn region. The remarks came after the White House said that the Algerian-proposed resolution would "jeopardize" negotiations to end the war in Gaza.
China Criticizes US Veto of Ceasefire Resolution
The American government has also proposed its own temporary ceasefire resolution for Gaza, which also warned Israel not to invade the city of Rafah. Many have expressed their discontent with the US decision to block Algeria's resolution as the Gaza war continues.
The resolution received support from 13 of the 15 members of the United Nations Security Council, with the United Kingdom abstaining. After the veto, China's UN ambassador Zhang Jun said that the claim that the resolution would interfere with ongoing negotiations was "totally untenable," as per BBC.
He added that given the situation on the ground, the continued passive avoidance of an immediate ceasefire in Gaza is the same as letting the slaughter continue. Zhang said that the spillover of the Israel-Hamas war is destabilizing the entire Middle East region, which leads to the risk of a wider war.
The Chinese official noted that only by extinguishing the flames of war in the Gaza Strip can the fires of hell be prevented from engulfing the entire region. On the other hand, Algeria's top UN diplomat declared that "unfortunately, the Security Council failed once again.
Amar Bendjama then told other officials to "Examine your conscience, how will history judge you." Allies of the United States were also critical of the decision to veto the ceasefire resolution. French UN envoy Nicolar de Riviere expressed regret that the measure had not been adopted given the disastrous situation on the ground.
Ending the Conflict in the Gaza Strip
Palestine's UN envoy, Riyad Mansour said that the US veto of the resolution was a message to Israel that it can continue to get away with murder. Bendjama noted that the rejection of the UNSC ceasefire resolution in Gaza shows "approval of starvation as a means of war," according to Aljazeera.
Mansour also claimed that "more babies will be murdered" due to the UNSC's failure to call for a ceasefire in Israel's continued war in Gaza against Hamas. He said that by the time the council session ends, more than 25 Palestinians will have lost their lives.
UK's ambassador to the UN, Barbara Woodward, said that the ceasefire resolution could "actually make a ceasefire less likely" because it would endanger ongoing discussions. The developments come as Israel's military operations in Gaza have already resulted in the deaths of more than 29,000 people in the region.
The ceasefire negotiations that the US referenced are being conducted between the US, Egypt, Israel, and Qatar. They seek to broker a pause in the conflict and the release of the hostages that the militant group has in the Gaza Strip, said the South China Morning Post.
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