News In Brief

US blocks UN censure of Grenada invasion

An American veto blocked a UN Security Council resolution Friday that ''deeply deplored the US invasion of Grenada'' as a ''flagrant violation of international law.''

Eleven countries voted in favor, three abstained (Britain, Togo, and Zaire), and the US alone voted against it, Monitor UN contributor Louis Wiznitzer reports. During the debate the US was virtually isolated, with the only support coming from the East Caribbean countries that had requested the US intervention.

Nicaragua and Cuba are now taking the matter to the General Assembly where the US is expected to face even harsher criticism.

Meanwhile, Grenada's UN ambassador Caldwell Taylor, who was appointed by murdered Prime Minister Maurice Bishop, rejects the American invasion and the ''puppet regime'' he says will result. The US challenges his credentials. Grenada's governor-general Sir Paul Scoon said he is sending a new UN representative. But it is debatable whether Sir Paul has the authority to do that, according to legal experts here.