Russia and China veto watered-down UN resolution aimed at reopening Strait of Hormuz

Russia and China veto a UN Security Council resolution aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz that had been repeatedly watered down in hopes that those two countries would abstain.

The vote — 11 in favor, two against and two abstentions — takes place just hours before an 8 p.m. Eastern deadline set by US President Donald Trump for Iran to open the strategic waterway or face attacks on its power plants and bridges.

It’s doubtful the resolution, even if it had been adopted, would have impacted the war, now in its fifth week, because it was significantly weakened to try to get Russia and China to abstain rather than veto it.

The initial Bahrain proposal would have authorized countries to use “all necessary means” — UN wording that would include military action — to ensure transit through the Strait of Hormuz and deter attempts to close it.

After Russia, China and France, all veto-wielding countries on the 15-member Security Council, expressed opposition to approving the use of force, the resolution was revised to eliminate all references to offensive action. It would have authorized only “all defensive means necessary.”

The resolution vetoed today “strongly encourages states interested in the use of commercial maritime routes in the Strait of Hormuz to coordinate efforts, defensive in nature, commensurate with the circumstances, to contribute to ensuring the safety and security of navigation across the Strait of Hormuz.”