Rather than veto the U.N. security council resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, the U.S. abstained. The resolution written by 10 elected members and passed by 14 members of the council was proposed in the chamber by Mozambique’s representative. Previous proposals had been rejected by the U.S., Russia and China.
According to a story in The Guardian, Russia attempted to amend the text by restoring a previous draft which included the word “permanent,” but that bid failed.
John Kirby, White House spokesperson, told reporters after the vote on Gaza, that U.S. abstention does not represent a shift in policy. A story in the Jerusalem Post quoted Kirby as saying: “We have been clear, and we’ve been consistent in our support for a ceasefire as part of a hostage deal. That’s how the hostage deal is structured. We wanted to get to a place where we could support that resolution, but because the final text does not have key language that we think is essential like a condemnation of Hamas. We could not support it.”
Shortly after the vote on Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, lived up his promise to cancel the planned trip to Washington to discuss the crisis if the U.S. failed to veto the proposal. His office announced that “In light of the change in the American position, Prime Minister Netanyahu has decided that the delegation will not travel to the U.S.”
It remains to be seen how the security council’s resolution will impact the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.