US secretary of state Mike Pompeo on Saturday said Russia and China had blood on their hands after the two countries used a veto of a United Nations security council resolution to block cross-border aid deliveries from Turkey and Iraq to millions of Syrian civilians
In October, amid growing chaos in Syria, Donald Trump abruptly ordered all US troops to withdraw from the country’s north to avoid a bloody conflict between Turkey and formerly US-backed Kurdish fighters.
Vital cross-border aid to Syria suffered its latest threat after the UN security council was unable to overcome Russian and Chinese objections to the programme.
The aid, which is sent over borders at four UN approved checkpoints and without the formal permission of the Syrian regime, is seen as critical as the humanitarian crisis in Idlib and north-east Syria continues to mount.
The resolution drafted by Belgium, Kuwait and Germany would have allowed cross-border humanitarian deliveries for another year from two points in Turkey and one in Iraq. But Syrian ally Russia only wanted to approve the two Turkish crossings for six months.
UN diplomats are eager to reach an agreement before Christmas, fearing it will be more difficult to solve the issue close to the deadline of 10 January since in the new year there will be a new UN security council membership.
