Syria Offers New Response to Annan's Proposals
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Syria has responded afresh to U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan on his six-point proposals to end the crisis in the country, the former U.N. chief's spokesman said Monday.
"The Syrian government has formally responded to the Joint Special Envoy for Syria, Kofi Annan's 6-point plan, as endorsed by the U.N. Security Council," he said in a statement. "Mr. Annan is studying it and will respond very shortly."
Annan's plan calls for a U.N.-supervised halt to fighting with the government pulling troops and heavy weapons out of protest cities, a daily two-hour humanitarian pause to hostilities and access to all areas affected by the fighting.
The special envoy also sought the release of people detained over the past year of the uprising against Assad in which monitors say more than 9,100 people have been killed.
Syrian authorities had already given a first round of response to his proposals in mid-March, but the special envoy had sought more information from Damascus.
The latest response came after a team dispatched by Annan to Syria returned after three days of discussions with Syrian authorities.
Annan, who secured backing from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev for his mediation efforts in their meeting Sunday, is due to visit Beijing Tuesday to brief leaders about his proposals.
In Moscow, Annan said only Syrians could determine President Bashar-al-Assad's fate and called for the rival sides to negotiate an end to the conflict.
"I think only Syrians should decide the issue of Assad's resignation," Annan told Russian news agencies in remarks translated into Russian.
"It's important to sit all Syrians behind a negotiating table," he said a day after meeting Medvedev.
The envoy added that it was "incorrect to give any deadlines" for ending the violence in Syria.
Medvedev warned Sunday that Annan represented the last chance for avoiding a civil war in Syria and promised him Russia's full support.
China and Russia have previously drawn criticism for blocking U.N. Security Council resolutions condemning Syria's protracted and deadly crackdown on protests, and their support is crucial for Annan's plan to move forward.
26 March 2012, 21:22
25
This means nothing. It means that Syria is buying more time to continue with its liquidation program. There is no way under the sun that Syria will ever agree to anything that Annan is proposing, they just do this from time to time to reposition their Fourth Brigade and Republican Guard and then to continue the slaughter.
Shame on the whole world for using this subtrefuge to assauage their guilty consciences over not stopping this murderous regime.
The world will reap the worldwind for their criminal callous inactivity in the face of known evil.
26 March 2012, 22:07
04
Beiruti is correct 100%. Assad has used multiple UN actions, Arab League actions, and now Annan to delay everything and keep slaughtering.
If the "Friends of Syria" don't deliver then there is another game being played.
26 March 2012, 23:44
01
The result of the world inaction to the criminality of the Assad crime family, their Lebanese/Iraqi stooges (and their Iranian/Russian masters) is the creation of a huge population base for Al-Qaida in the Sunni population of Syria. the USA and Western Europe, driven by Israel, make the same mistakes since the 1950's with the same results without ever learning.
27 March 2012, 00:33
03
With Moscow and Peking's intransigence, the West has no choice but to go along with them until the dead end is obvious to all.
The Syrian Regime still thinks (wrongly) that it can still prevail by force. Fact is a substantial portion of the Syrians are in revolt and re-subjugating them is just not going to happen. Furthermore, after all the derisions and sanctions the West enacted against this Syrian regime and its leaders, it is impossible to imagine that any Western government will again deal with it.
27 March 2012, 08:33
01
that is just a diplomatic statement to please the russians. Everyone knows that annan will fail. This is just another chapter in the drama. I actually find all this in favor of the revolution. Time is by no means on the regime's side. do not be fooled with all the tanks and shells, the regime can attack but can not occupy. How many times have we heard about dara, rastan, douma, zabadani, idlib, etc being attacked? did the demos stop? did the revolution end? on the contrary they grew in size and popularity. Some revolutions last for years.
27 March 2012, 12:10
20
Saddam and Khaddafi were isolated. Syria has Iran and HA. If anything militarily to happen, I am sure, the situation will change quickly. It will turn into a major war.
27 March 2012, 17:33
01
I dont think Russia or Iran will go to war to save Assad - keep dreaming.
