UNITED NATIONS — China and Russia vetoed a Security Council resolution Friday that would have imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe and members of his regime for rigging the June 27 presidential runoff election.
The U.S.-sponsored resolution, which would have frozen the leaders' assets, barred them from leaving the country, and prohibited arms imports, aimed to pressure Mugabe to reach a political settlement with the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.
Zimbabwe's ambassador to the U.N., Boniface Chidyausiku, said the resolution's failure was a blow to the United States' and Britain's attempts to use the Security Council as their tool to "rule the world."
He said that the vetoes by China and Russia validated Zimbabwe's argument that the situation in his country did not warrant international intervention and that sanctions would undermine talks in South Africa between the ruling party and MDC leaders.
But British Ambassador John Sawers told the Council that it had "failed to shoulder its responsibility to do what it can to prevent a national tragedy deepening and spreading its effects across southern Africa."
The MDC won the most seats in parliamentary elections March 29, and its presidential candidate, Morgan Tsvangirai, received more votes than Mugabe. But, officially, Tsvangirai fell short of a majority.
He eventually dropped out of the runoff, citing violence and intimidation by Mugabe's ZANU-PF party. Mugabe has ruled Zimbabwe since independence from Britain in 1980.
Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin framed his country's veto as an expression of opposition to a larger trend of Western countries trying to intervene in other nations' matters, such as in Myanmar and Sudan, under the guise of protecting international security.
In Zimbabwe's case, he said, sanctions would only undercut South Africa's mediation efforts.
"This resolution is nothing but an attempt to interfere in the internal matters of Zimbabwe," he said.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said any country opposing the resolution would "be on the wrong side of history."
"I don't see how anybody, anybody, any country in good conscience can vote against this resolution after witnessing what has gone on in Zimbabwe," McCormack said.
Nine countries voted in favor of the sanctions and one abstained. Besides China and Russia, South Africa, Libya and Vietnam voted against. A resolution needs at least nine yes votes and no vetoes to pass.
