China and Russia on Thursday vetoed a US resolution calling for tougher United Nations sanctions against North Korea, AFP reported.
The resolution enjoyed the support of the 13 other members of the Security Council.
China, the closest ally of North Korea, and Russia, whose relations with the West have sunk over its invasion of Ukraine, both said they would have preferred a non-binding statement rather than a fresh resolution with teeth against Pyongyang.
The United States "should not replace one-sided emphasis on the implementation of sanctions alone. It should also work to promote the political solution," said China's ambassador to the United Nations, Zhang Jun.
He warned that sanctions would have humanitarian consequences for North Korea, which recently announced an outbreak of Covid in one of the most closed societies.
Russia's ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, accused the United States of ignoring North Korea's appeals to stop "hostile activity" and engage in dialogue.
The US-drafted resolution would have reduced the amount of oil that North Korea can legally import each year for civilian purposes from four million to three million barrels (525,000 to 393,750 tons).
It would similarly cut imports of refined petroleum from 500,000 to 375,000 barrels.
The resolution came after North Korea fired a volley of missiles, including possibly its largest intercontinental ballistic missile.
Three missiles, including one ICBM, were fired in the latest launch from the Sunan area in Pyongyang, South Korea said.
North Korea has conducted more than a dozen weapons tests since January, including the firing an intercontinental ballistic missile at full range for the first time since 2017.
North Korea has ramped up its missile tests ever since talks with Washington on denuclearization failed.
Former US President Donald Trump tried to reach an agreement with North Korea while in office. Kim and Trump met in Hanoi in 2019 for a summit that left nuclear talks at a standstill.
The pair had met three times since June 2018 but made little progress towards denuclearization.
The Biden administration reached out to North Korea shortly after taking office, but the country did not respond to those overtures.
The Biden administration says it is ready to start talks with North Korea without preconditions, but would pursue working-level negotiations and not the pageantry of another summit.