U.S. Says Syria Truce Pledge to be Judged by Actions
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Wednesday she is alarmed about the "ongoing violence" in Syria on the eve of a ceasefire deadline.
In remarks to the Group of Eight foreign ministers, she also voiced concern about the problems facing U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan as he tries to get Syria to implement his peace plan that calls for a ceasefire on Thursday.
"The events of this past year, even in just this past week, affirm the continued need for comprehensive international cooperation and the G8 is an essential forum for that," Clinton told the major industrialized nations.
"We are alarmed for the ongoing violence in Syria," she said.
"We are concerned about the problems facing special envoy Kofi Annan to bring about a ceasefire and the end of violence. We are very watchful of this. This will be on our agenda later this afternoon," she said.
Earlier on Wednesday, the U.S. envoy to the United Nations said that even if Syria keeps to the promised ceasefire it will not be enough to comply with the Annan’s peace plan.
Syria's promise to Annan "is not and cannot in our judgment be construed as compliance" with the Annan peace plan, ambassador Susan Rice told reporters. She added that Syria's commitments "have little if any credibility" because of past broken promises.
Syria has announced that it will respect a ceasefire from Thursday 0300 GMT as called for by Annan.
But it has reserved the right to "respond proportionately to any attacks carried out by armed terrorist groups against civilians, government forces or public and private property," Annan's spokesman said.
Despite the pledge, the United States and its European allies are doubtful that President Bashar Assad will end the conflict that the U.N. says has left more than 9,000 dead in the past 13 months.
Syria has already failed to keep a Tuesday deadline to withdraw its troops and heavy guns from population centers.
"Fighting is still raging as we speak reflecting what has been an intensification of the violence the Syrian government has pursued since April 1 when it committed to cease all hostile action," Rice said.
"Its commitments therefore have little, if any, credibility ... given that track record. We will await with interest the Syrian regime's posture tomorrow," the envoy added.
And State Department spokesman Victoria Nuland said Washington "will judge the Assad regime by what it does, not by what it says."
"Meanwhile, the violence rages on today," she added.
Annan is to brief the Security Council on Thursday on Syria's compliance with the six point plan agreed to by Assad.
Source: Agence France Presse
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