UNITED NATIONS, United States, March 14, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – A two-pronged US push for action on Syria at the UN Security Council could prompt Russia to again use its veto, a move some diplomats see as a possible trigger for American strikes in Syria.
Russia has used its veto power 11 times to block action against its Syrian ally, shielding President Bashar al-Assad’s government from sanctions, war crimes investigations and an inquiry into chemical weapons attacks.
Speculation about a 12th Russian veto on Syria is again rife after the United States on Monday put forward a draft resolution on a 30-day ceasefire in Eastern Ghouta and Damascus.
The move was in response to the failure of a UN-approved humanitarian ceasefire to take hold despite backing from Russia, which is helping Syria’s offensive in Eastern Ghouta, a rebel enclave on the outskirts of the capital.
The operation has reportedly killed more than 1,100 civilians since it was launched in mid-February.
A separate US-drafted measure to set up an inquiry into chemical weapons attacks is under negotiation, but diplomats said talks with Russia had hit a wall.
With two measures on the table, US Ambassador Nikki Haley has warned that the United States is ready to act in Syria “if we must” to address the use of chemical weapons and “inhuman suffering.”
“When the international community consistently fails to act, there are times when states are compelled to take their own action,” Haley said on Monday.
“We also warn any nation that is determined to impose its will through chemical attacks and inhuman suffering, most especially the outlaw Syrian regime: the United States remains prepared to act if we must.”
It remains unclear when the United States will put its draft resolutions up for a vote at the council, which is increasingly frustrated by its inability to change the course of the war in Syria.