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Russia and China on Tuesday vetoed a UN Security Council resolution aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz, dealing a blow to Gulf-backed efforts to restore shipping through one of the world’s most important oil routes.The resolution submitted by Bahrain failed despite receiving 11 votes in favour, with Pakistan and Colombia abstaining from voting. The vote came just hours before the deadline set by US President Donald Trump for Iran to reopen the Strait or face sweeping attacks on its infrastructure.
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Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdul Latif bin Rashid Al Zayani said, “Failure to adopt this resolution sends the wrong signal to the world and to the peoples of the world,” warning that failure to act threatens to undermine efforts to protect global waterways.The proposal has undergone multiple revisions in an attempt to avoid a veto. An earlier draft had called for the use of “all necessary means” to ensure safe passage, language that could have allowed military action, but was reduced to “defensive means” and later stripped of any explicit Security Council authorization.In its final form, the resolution only encouraged countries relying on the strait to coordinate defensive measures, including escorting commercial ships and deterring attempts to disrupt shipping.
He also called on Iran to immediately stop attacks on commercial ships and stop interfering in navigation through the strait, through which nearly a fifth of the world’s oil supplies usually pass.However, Russia and China opposed the move, blaming the United States and Israel for escalating the conflict. Their envoys said the priority should be an immediate cessation of hostilities rather than measures focused solely on maritime security.
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Do you think the UN Security Council should intervene in the Strait of Hormuz situation?
The confrontation comes as Iran’s blockade of the Strait continues to shake global energy markets and raise concerns among Gulf states, many of which rely heavily on the route of oil and gas exports. Bahrain, which hosts the US Fifth Fleet, has been pushing for international intervention, describing the disruption as an existential threat.Tensions escalated with repeated warnings from Trump, who demanded that Iran reopen the waterway. He warned that non-compliance could lead to a large-scale military response, saying the country could be “taken out overnight” if an agreement is not reached.