Only Russia, China and Brazil voted in favour of the Russian-drafted resolution while the remaining 12 council members abstained.

A resolution needs at least nine votes in favour and no vetoes by Russia, China, France, the United States or the United Kingdom to pass.

Russia proposed the draft resolution last month, just days before the first anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine.

"Without an objective and transparent international investigation the truth will not be uncovered as to what happened," Russia's UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told the council before the vote.

The pipeline blasts occurred in the exclusive economic zones of Sweden and Denmark in September last year.

Last month Sweden, Denmark and Germany said that their own separate investigations by national authorities were still ongoing and Russia has been informed.

They said in a joint letter to the Security Council that the damage was caused by "powerful explosions due to sabotage".

The United States and the NATO military alliance have called the pipeline attacks "an act of sabotage" while Russia has blamed the US and the UK and called for an independent investigation.

"The United States was not involved in any way. Period," deputy US ambassador to the UN Robert Wood said, accusing Russia of trying to "discredit the work of ongoing national investigations and prejudice any conclusions they reach that do not comport to Russia's predetermined and political narrative".

Most of the Security Council members who abstained on Monday said they did so because the investigations should be allowed to conclude before considering whether any action at the UN was needed.

Russia has complained that it has not been kept informed about the ongoing national investigations.

Australian Associated Press