Russia vetoed a United Nations Security Council draft resolution on Wednesday that would have set up an international tribunal to prosecute those suspected of downing a Malaysia Airlines passenger airliner last year in eastern Ukraine.
Eleven countries on the 15-member council voted in favour of the proposal by Malaysia, Australia, the Netherlands and Ukraine, while three countries abstained: China, Angola and Venezuela.
"What are the grounds to be assured of the impartiality of such an investigation?" Russian ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin said in a speech to the Council after the vote.
Earlier in the day, Russian president Vladimir Putin rejected a last-minute appeal from theDutch Prime Minister to support the creation of the international tribunal.
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