French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said Wednesday that Russia and China's veto of a United Nations resolution condemning the crackdown on protesters in Syria was a "sad day" for the Syrian people, DPA reported.
On Tuesday, Russia and China used their veto to torpedo a draft UN Security Council resolution condemning President Bashar al-Assad's regime, even though the text had been watered down to remove any references to sanctions.
Nine members of the 15-nation council supported the resolution, which would have been enough for the text to pass, had China and Russia abstained.
"It's a sad day for the Syrian people. It's a sad day for the Security Council," Juppe said in a statement.
France and its European partners had "tried everything" to put forward a text that took into account the concerns of all Council members, he said.
Russia and China said they opposed the resolution because it contained no guarantees against foreign military intervention in Syria.