PGA Opens U.N. Veto Reckoning on Hormuz as Gulf States, U.S., China, Russia, Iran and Israel Clash
- 2 hours ago
- 3 min read
By: Ahmed Fathi
UNHQ, New York: UN General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock on Thursday opened a formal debate on the Russian and Chinese vetoes that blocked a Security Council resolution on the Strait of Hormuz, using the General Assembly’s 2022 veto-review mechanism to put the Council’s deadlock under public scrutiny.
Baerbock said the issue of safe passage through the strategic waterway should not “end with the casting of the veto,” linking the crisis to oil-price shocks, disrupted fertilizer flows and recession risks. Her remarks framed the session as a political warning about the cost of paralysis when a regional conflict spills into global trade and energy markets.
The debate showed broad agreement on the Strait’s global importance, but not on accountability. Gulf states and the United States argued the failed draft was a necessary response to threats against civilian navigation. China, Russia and Iran said the text was one-sided and risked lending legitimacy to wider military action.
The Gulf position in the Assembly was delivered not by Bahrain directly, but by Kuwait. Ambassador Tareq Al Banai spoke on behalf of Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, saying the April 7 draft reflected collective action after extensive consultations and six revised versions. He said the group would continue work on a new resolution to secure freedom of maritime navigation.
The United States used the session to keep pressure on Tehran and the two vetoing powers. Ambassador Michael Waltz called the Russian and Chinese vetoes “truly unfortunate” and said Washington stood with Bahrain and its Gulf allies. He argued the draft had been a simple regional resolution to protect civilian shipping and freedom of navigation, and accused Iran of trying to hold the world’s economies hostage through the strait.
China and Russia defended their vetoes as a check on escalation. China’s Ambassador Fu Cong said Beijing opposed any Council action that could provide a “veneer of legitimacy” for unauthorized military operations. Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative Anna Evstigneeva, said the draft remained confrontational and factually flawed and still risked becoming cover for further escalation under the pretext of protecting navigation.
Pakistan cast itself as a diplomatic bridge. Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said talks held in Islamabad on April 11 and 12 were part of an effort to end the war and create conditions for long-term peace. He called for safe passage for civilian ships, protection for crews and restoration of normal transit through Hormuz, while saying any arrangement would need to account for the legitimate interests of Gulf countries.
Iran welcomed the vetoes and rejected the Gulf-backed draft as one-sided. Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani called the Chinese and Russian move timely, justified and necessary, argued that the text ignored what Tehran sees as the root cause of the crisis, and said Iran remained cautiously optimistic about diplomacy despite deep mistrust of Washington.
Israel’s ambassador, Danny Danon, accused Iran of trying to choke the strait and turn it into a weapon. He said repeated rounds of negotiation had already weakened the Security Council draft before it was vetoed and argued that blocking even that diluted text meant siding with Tehran rather than remaining neutral.
The Assembly cannot reverse a veto, but the debate sharpened the political cost of one. Gulf states are preparing a revised maritime-security push. Washington wants the focus on Iranian interference and Sino-Russian obstruction. China and Russia are signaling they will resist any text they see as reopening the door to force by another name. Iran wants the crisis folded back into wider negotiations, while Pakistan is trying to keep that lane open.