Russia on Tuesday vetoed a draft UN Security Council resolution submitted by Switzerland and Brazil to extend cross-border delivery of humanitarian aid to Syria through Turkey for nine months
UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th July, 2023) Russia on Tuesday vetoed a draft UN Security Council resolution submitted by Switzerland and Brazil to extend cross-border delivery of humanitarian aid to Syria through Turkey for nine months.
Thirteen UNSC members voted in favor of the draft resolution, with China abstaining.
The mechanism of cross-border delivery of aid to Syria through the Bab al-Hawa border crossing on the Syrian-Turkish border expired on July 10.
Meanwhile, Russia has submitted its own draft resolution to the UN Security Council, proposing extending the work of the border crossing for six months.
The regime of simplified delivery of humanitarian and medical supplies to Syria from neighboring countries � primarily across the border with Turkey � has been operating since 2014. This mechanism is renewed annually. Originally, there were four border crossings: Bab as-Salam and Bab al-Hawa (both on the Syrian-Turkish border), Al-Yarubiyah (on the border with Iraq) and al-Ramtha (on the border with Jordan) that were used by the UN and their partners to deliver aid to Syrians.
Since July 2020, there is only one official border-crossing remaining, Bab al-Hawa.
After the Syrian armed forces established control over most of the country, Damascus and Moscow have begun to push for gradually abandoning the cross-border mechanism. They say aid should be distributed from inside the country.
