France, England call out Russia for Syria stance at UN Security Council meeting

France and England held Russia responsible for not moderating Syria’s actions, at the April 5 U.N. Security Council meeting.

The council wanted to come together with a plan to rein in Syria’s Bashar al-Assad. All prior plans foundered on Russia’s inevitable veto.

French U.N. Ambassador François Delattre said, “Russia as a guarantor of the truce established on the 20th of December 2016, and as a permanent member of the Security Council carries a particular responsibility that it must assume today, together with all the members of this council.”

Syrian planes dropped poison gas on a village in rebel-held Idlib Province.

Over 70 civilians were killed, including about a dozen children.

Russia has supported Syria’s Bashar al-Assad politically and militarily throughout the six-year war.

In February, Russia, backed by China, blocked a bid by Western powers to impose sanctions on Assad’s government, sanctions in part prompted by reports of chemical weapons attacks.

British U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft asked the Russian ambassador, “What is your plan? What is your plan to stop these horrific senseless attacks? We had a plan and we had the support and you rejected it to protect Assad.”

The 15-member Security Council has 5 permanent members—Russia, the U.K., France, China, and the United States—which can veto any action agreed to by the rest.

The Security Council is desperate to get Russia’s cooperation to limit if not end the six-year civil war, which has cost the lives of hundreds of thousands of Syrians and created some 1.5 million refugees.