Russia says UN resolution on Gaza by US lacks details for implementation

HAMILTON, Canada

Russia's permanent representative to UN criticized a US-backed three-phase cease-fire plan for Gaza on Monday, saying it lacks details for its implementation.

Vassily Nebenzia held a news conference after Russia took over the presidency of the Security Council in July, and responded to Anadolu's question on the implementation of the resolution that supports the truce proposal announced by US President Joe Biden, with 14 votes in favor and Russia abstaining on June 10.

Emphasizing that an "unequivocal, immediate and verifiable cease-fire" must be demanded by the Security Council first, Nebenzia said the US proposal did not clearly address the issue of the truce.

He said the proposal in the resolution was "vague" and lacked necessary details.

Nebenzia said Russia abstained as it did not want to sign a resolution whose implementation, objectives, and timeframe were unclear.

"We did not want to give a blank document to our colleagues to pretend the implementation in fact, sabotage the [cease-fire] process, which we see happening," he said.

The Russian envoy said that despite US assurances of support for the decision, Israel's statements immediately after its adoption showed it was not true.

"Now they're blaming Hamas as if Israel has agreed to which is not the case ... This ping pong continues, but nothing happens. Nothing happens in reality," he added.

The Security Council adopted a resolution that supports a Gaza cease-fire proposal announced by Biden.

The adopted resolution highlights the diplomatic efforts led by Egypt, the US, and Qatar, and welcomed the three-phase proposal presented on May 31.

Israel has killed nearly 38,000 Palestinians since an Oct. 7, 2023 cross-border, triggering a humanitarian disaster and trial over alleged genocide at the International Court of Justice.