Despite receiving the backing of 14 out of 15 members of the United Nations' security council, an Arab-sponsored UN resolution branding Israeli settlements illegal was vetoed by the United States.

Instead, the US defended a weaker, non-binding presidential statement that effectively rejects the legitimacy of Israel's settlements.

Al Jazeera spoke with Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the United Nations, about the Obama administration's first veto casted in the United Nations security council.