US, China and Russia should end 'pernicious' Security Council vetoes: UN chief

UN rights chief Antonio Guterres urged US, China, and Russia to end "pernicious" Security Council vetoes while condemning the "prolific slaughterhouses" in Syria and other conflicts

The UN secretary-general also demanded that a Security Council resolution for a 30-day ceasefire in Syria be "immediately implemented and sustained." 

The UN chief stressed that "Security Council resolutions are only meaningful if they are effectively implemented, and that is why I expect the resolution to be immediately implemented and sustained."

UN members approved a ceasefire in Syria on Saturday after weeks of wrangling over the issue. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had earlier called the conflict  "Hell on Earth".

The resolution was stuck after Russia demanded that the rebel group fighting President Bashar al-Assad's forces also comply with the resolution. After protracted talks, the resolution was finally passed unanimously ensuring a 30-day ceasefire in the war-torn country.

The Syrian military forces have not commented on the resolution so far.

In November, Russia had used its veto to end a UN-backed investigation of chemical weapons in Syria.

In May last year, Russia, Iran and Turkey had signed an agreement to set up de-escalation zones, in order to prevent airstrike-related incidents in some parts of Syria.