United Nations, Oct 5 (PTI): India on Wednesday abstained from voting while Russia and China vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that threatened action against Syria if it didn't immediately halt a deadly crackdown on anti-regime protesters.

Russia and China, both permanent members of the Security Council, vetoed the European-backed resolution, killing the draft. Apart from India, countries that abstained from voting were Brazil, Lebanon and South Africa.

Countries voting in favour of the resolution were Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colombia, France, Gabon, Germany, Nigeria, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the US.

The 15 Security Council members have been negotiating different versions of a resolution for more than three months.

The draft resolution condemned the violent crackdown by President Bashar Al-Assad's forces against pro-democracy protesters and demanded immediate end to the violence.

India's Permanent Representative to the UN Hardeep Singh Puri said that actions of the international community should facilitate an engagement of the Syrian government and the opposition in a "Syrian-led inclusive political process and not complicate the situation by threats of sanctions, regime change.

"The resolution under the Council's consideration does not accommodate our concern about threat of sanctions. It does not condemn the violence perpetrated by the Syrian opposition," Singh said.

He added that the resolution also did not place any responsibility on the opposition in Syria to abjure violence and engage with the nation's authorities for redressal of their grievances through a peaceful political process.