Russia and China have vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution to refer the Syrian civil war to the International Criminal Court.
Wang Min (C), China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, votes against a Security Council draft resolution on Syria, at the UN headquarters in New York, on May 22, 2014. (Xinhua/Niu Xiaolei)
The draft resolution was proposed by France. Thirteen members of the Security Council voted in favor and two against. The vote at the 15-nation U.N. body made it a fourth double veto by Russia and China on a Western-drafted resolution on Syria, with the two countries having vetoed three previous draft resolutions on the issue.
Syria is not a state party to the Rome Statute which established the ICC, so the only way the Middle East country can be referred to the tribunal in The Hague is by the Security Council.
