Nearly 4 million Syrians have fled the conflict into neighboring countries, which warn they are dangerously overstretched.
“We cannot look at Syria, and the evil that has arisen from the ashes of indecision, and think this is not the lowest point in the world’s inability to protect and defend the innocent,” Jolie said.
“We are standing by in Syria,” she said, adding that the council’s powers lie unused because members cannot agree on how to address the conflict.
Jolie, who said she has made 11 visits to Syrian refugees in the region since the crisis began in 2011, called for the political will to act.
Russia, a top Syria ally and backed by China, has vetoed council resolutions on Syria.
Jolie also spoke briefly about the rising immigration crisis on the Mediterranean, where more than 1,300 migrants fleeing Syria and other places have drowned at sea over the past three weeks.
“It is sickening to see thousands of refugees drowning on the doorstep of the world’s wealthiest continent,” she said. “No one risks the lives of their children in this way except out of utter desperation.”
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