Sarkozy, Obama Urge Syria to Respect U.N. Peace Plan

Presidents Nicolas Sarkozy of France and Barack Obama of the United States demanded Thursday that Syria respect the terms of a peace plan drawn up by a U.N. envoy and the Arab League.

The French presidency announced the joint call in a statement after the leaders held videophone talks on a series of world crises, and warned that Bashar al-Assad's regime would be "judged on its actions".

"The two presidents urged the Syrian regime to scrupulously and unconditionally respect its undertakings in regard to the plan by the United Nations special envoy and the Arab League," the statement said.

"In liaison with their partners, notably their Arab partners, they agreed to intensify their efforts, including at the U.N. Security Council, to bring a definitive end to the brutal repression of the Syrian people," it said.

The leaders vowed to find a way "for humanitarian aid to be delivered, and for the Syrian people to freely choose their destiny." And they warned: "Those responsible for abuses will have to answer for their crimes."

Earlier, U.N. special Syria envoy Kofi Annan said that Syria has not been abiding by all of the terms of a ceasefire it had agreed to under his peace plan, despite the start of a truce between government and rebel forces.