-
5 November 2013 – International efforts to bring about a peaceful
solution to the crisis in Syria continue apace, with two United Nations
officials reporting today on their work towards convening a political
conference that brings all sides in the conflict to the negotiating
table, and overseeing the destruction of the country’s chemical weapons
stockpiles, reported on their latest activities today.The UN still hopes for a so-called Geneva II conference before the end of the year, Lakhdar Brahimi told journalists in Geneva, reiterating the importance of a political solution to the crisis, which is now in its third year.
“As far as the United Nations is concerned, we are ready and the Secretary-General is impatient to get the conference going,” said Mr. Brahimi, the Joint Special Representative of the UN and the League of Arab States.
Despite trilateral discussions between the UN, Russia and the United States, diplomats were unable to announce a date for the conference and plan to meet again on 25 November.
Mr. Brahimi noted that part of the delay in convening the conference is due to problems among the Syrian opposition.
“They are divided, that is no secret for anybody, and they are facing all sorts of problems and they are working very, very hard to get ready,” he stressed, adding that he hoped the opposition would be able to agree on a delegation to attend the potential conference.
Following the trilateral discussion, Mr. Brahimi participated in a meeting with the remaining countries that are among the five permanent members of the Security Council – China, France and the United Kingdom – and then with the countries that border Syria, namely Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey.
Finally, he met with representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and UN humanitarian agencies.
Mr. Brahimi noted that Kuwait would host a second donor conference to raise aid for Syrian refugees at the request of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The first conference raised $1.5 billion in pledges.
“I hope the donors will be as generous,” Mr. Brahimi said, adding that the current solution to the humanitarian disaster is not sustainable and reiterating the need for a political end to the conflict.
“The only solution to the humanitarian crisis is a political solution to the crisis,” he reiterated “There is no military solution. The Government is not going to win and the opposition is not going to win.”
Meanwhile, speaking to the press at UN Headquarters in New York following her first briefing to the Security Council, Sigrid Kaag, Special Coordinator of the Joint Mission of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) overseeing the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons programme, said she had reported on the Mission’s first full month of work.
She told the Council of the progress to date “under difficult circumstances,” and added that the Syrian authorities were cooperating constructively with the Mission. Ms. Kaag also stressed the need for future international assistance subject to the approval of the destruction plan presented by the Syrian Government.
“We had a very good discussion with Council members; questions were raised concerning staff safety and security and the possible anticipated role of the Joint Mission, obviously continued verification monitoring but also possibly support for implementation of the final phases of the overall plan,” she said
She said that Council members had also asked questions about the two sites the Joint Mission had been unable to visit. Those sites had been declared “abandoned” in the Syrian Government’s initial declaration to the OPCW. She reiterated the agency’s intent to have inspectors visit those sites in the future “subject to security conditions in country.”
Asked by a reporter if she thought Syria had the capability to destroy the weapons or if that task should be handled by another country, Ms. Kaag said that a team of officials from the UN, the OPCW and Damascus was looking at that issue this week in The Hague and a decision would be made by mid-November, when the OPCW Executive Council is set to meet on next steps.
To a question on funding, she said that the UN voluntary fund set up to support the Joint Mission had received some $2 million, while the OPCW mechanism had roughly $10 million, which would carry the Joint Mission through the end of the year. She hoped that after the OPCW Executive Council meeting, a financial plan that covers the overall planned work of the Mission could be devised.
un.org
5/11/13
---
Related:
Sponsors of the Syrian opposition want to disrupt Geneva-2 - Alexei Pushkov.
Qatar slams 'unconditional' proposed Syria talks...
Next Russia-US-UN meeting on Geneva-2 conference to take place on November 25...
- 19 Syria rebel groups reject Geneva talks...
Syrian opposition sets conditions for talks. Opposition leader tells 'Friends of Syria' conference in London that President Assad has to go before they participate.
Conflict in Syria ‘a war on terror,’ Deputy Prime Minister tells UN General Assembly.
UN Security Council agrees to rid Syria of chemical weapons. Endorses peace process. (4 video UN 27/9/13)
Chemical Weapons Must Be Seized From Syria Rebels – Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu
Lavrov: ‘Either secure Syria's chemical weapons, or arm its rebels’ (EXCLUSIVE RT)
GR
FR
DE
ES
IT
RU
EU
U.S. skeptical over Syria chemical deceleration, top official says...
ReplyDeleteAl Arabiya
The United States has strong doubts about Syria’s declaration of its chemical arsenal to the international chemical weapons watchdog, a top U.S. envoy to the United Nations said on Tuesday.
Samantha Power, Washington’s U.N. envoy, said experience in dealing with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has led to U.S. “skepticism.”
The U.S. official said American experts are studying the 700-page deceleration made to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and are checking its accuracy.
Assad had agreed to destroy all his chemical arms by mid-2014 as part of a Russia-U.S. deal that headed off the threat of a U.S. military strike on Syria.
Damascus has also met a deadline to destroy its chemical weapons production facilities and been praised for its cooperation by international inspectors.
But “more work of course remains to be done to ensure that the Syrian government's list of declared sites is comprehensive and that the process remains on track, particularly as we enter the destruction phase,” Power said.
Other U.S. officials said Washington is concerned that the Assad government could try to retain some of its stockpiles.
“There are some indications that certain elements of the Syrian regime want to preserve their chemical weapons stockpiles,” one such official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told AFP.
But the officials said the U.S. administration has full confidence in OPCW inspectors and any Syrian breach of its obligations would be dealt with “through diplomatic channels.”
“There are some officials who don’t think the Syrians will complete the destruction of their chemical weapons,” said a second official, and there are others “who are cautiously optimistic that will happen.”
(with AFP)
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/11/06/U-S-skeptical-over-Syria-chemical-deceleration-top-official-says-.html
6/11/13
Another trilateral fiasco delays political settlement in Syria...
ReplyDeleteGENEVA, November 6 (Itar-Tass) - Yet another Russia-U.S.-UN meeting on Tuesday resulted in failure. As at the previous two rounds of consultations last June in the Palace of Nations, home of the UN office in Geneva, the parties failed to agree on the date for a peace forum, dubbed Geneva-2 in the media. Diplomats were not salvaged by involving new protagonists in the final talks, namely all UN Security Council countries. Neither did the humanitarian agenda help - reports were presented by the International Committee of the Red Cross and other international humanitarian organisations.
In effect, November 23, emerging several times in media reports as the Geneva-2 date, proved as elusive as many times before since May, when Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. State Secretary John Kerry agreed that there was a need to convene the second peace forum.
“We hoped we could agree on another date on Tuesday. Unfortunately, we can’t,” said UN-Arab League Joint Special Representative for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi, formal organiser of the meeting, as he summed up results of the several-hour consultations.
The Algerian envoy did not try to conceal one of the main reasons for yet another failure - unpreparedness of the Syrian opposition, one of the future participants of Geneva-2. However, some pundits were skeptical before the meeting, inquiring how Russia, the U.S. and the UN could set the date if the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces was to meet only in several days, on November 9. It is this meeting where the West-opposition, the so-called "moderate" opposition, is finally to decide whether to take part in Geneva-2. Alas, the fears have been realised.
Russia's Foreign Ministry was outspoken about those to blame. “America does not have sufficient leverage to consolidate the opposition,” said Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Gennadiy Gatilov, who led the Russian delegation along with another deputy foreign minister, Presidential Special Representative in the Near East Mikhail Bogdanov. The Russian diplomats have repeatedly said before that Russia had done its job, having provided for Syrian participation in Geneva-2. Yet no progress has been made with the opposition.....http://www.itar-tass.com/c39/943916.html
6/11/13
Syrian opposition urges U.N. envoy Brahimi to remain ‘neutral’...
ReplyDeleteAl Arabiya
Syria’s key opposition National Coalition on Wednesday urged U.N.-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi to remain neutral, after he cited opposition divisions over new delays to peace talks, Agence France-Presse reported.
“The Syrian National Coalition confirms that the mission of the joint U.N.-Arab League envoy -- as understood by the Syrian people -- is to seek to achieve their legitimate aspirations and lift their suffering, or to remain neutral at the very least,” AFP quoted the Coalition as saying in a statement.
The statement comes a day after Brahimi said intensive talks on a mooted peace conference in Geneva had failed to produce a final date for the long-planned discussions.
The opposition accused Brahimi of seeking to “blame” the opposition for his failure to convene the conference, urging him to “adhere to neutrality and not stray from what is acceptable in political discourse.”
Brahimi told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday that there was no date, which had been set for peace talks despite renewed suggestions that a conference could take place in November.
Pressed to reveal the main stumbling blocks, Brahimi cited divisions within the Syrian opposition, saying he hoped they would “move towards the formation of a credible delegation” for peace talks.
“That will be a big step forward to make the conference possible,” the Algerian veteran international mediator said.
The Coalition has long said that it will not attend the conference if President Bashar al-Assad doesn’t cede power. Syria said the leader’s role will not be on the table.
The Coalition is also due to meet in Istanbul on Saturday to discuss participation in any peace talks, but faces opposition from a key group which has threatened to quit the grouping if it takes part.
Assad compares Syria to Algeria
In a related story, President Assad on Wednesday compared his country’s war against rebels, whom he describes as “terrorists,” to the conflict that devastated Algeria for an entire decade.
“The Algerian people’s position on the Syrian conflict is not surprising, considering they had to undergo a challenge that was similar to the Syrian people’s, which is currently facing terrorism,” AFP quoted Assad as saying during a visit by an Algerian delegation to Damascus.
When an anti-Assad revolt broke out in March 2011, Damascus branded opponents as “terrorists,” even before the movement took up arms.
Algeria has systematically abstained in Arab League votes that have resulted in decisions to punish the Assad regime.
The Algerian civil war in the 1990s killed 200,000 people, according to official figures.
It erupted after the army suspended an electoral process when the Islamic Salvation Front (FIS) won the first round of a parliamentary vote in 1991.
(With AFP)
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2013/11/07/Syrian-opposition-urges-U-N-envoy-Brahimi-to-remain-neutral-.html
7/11/13
Genève-2: les consultations russo-américaines dans l'impasse?...
ReplyDeleteLa conférence de paix sur la Syrie est une équation à inconnues multiples. La date de la réunion annoncée fin octobre par le secrétaire d'Etat américain John Kerry – le 25 novembre – n'est plus pertinente, écrit jeudi le quotidien Rossiïskaïa gazeta.
Les cycles de consultations qui se succèdent pour tenter d’organiser cette réunion internationale se réduisent principalement à deux questions : l'opposition syrienne parlera-t-elle d'une seule voix à Genève-2 ; les opposants laïques de Damas sont-ils capables de contrôler les islamistes radicaux qui combattent le régime de Bachar al-Assad. Il semble que la réponse à ces deux questions soit "non".
Selon Guennadi Gatilov, vice-ministre russe des Affaires étrangères qui a participé aux négociations trilatérales Onu-USA-Russie sur le problème syrien, "nous avons senti que les Américains n'avaient pas suffisamment de leviers pour consolider l'opposition syrienne".
Pendant ce temps les monarchies du Golfe cherchent à éliminer du champ diplomatique leurs principaux concurrents en Syrie – les Iraniens – et les autorités iraniennes laissent entendre que Genève-2 n'aurait aucune utilité sans la participation de Téhéran. Le ministre iranien des Affaires étrangères Mohammad Javad Zarif a déclaré sur France 24 que les conseillers militaires et les volontaires iraniens qui combattaient du côté d'Assad avec les chiites libanais pourraient quitter la Syrie - mais seulement si les islamistes sunnites étrangers, financés par l'Arabie saoudite et le Qatar, quittaient également le pays.
Moscou prône une implication active des médiateurs iraniens dans le dialogue sur la Syrie. Mais Washington et l'émissaire de l'Onu et de la Ligue arabe Lakhdar Brahimi s’y opposent, explique Guennadi Gatilov. En fin de semaine les dirigeants de la Coalition nationale syrienne d'opposition se réuniront à Istanbul et devront prendre une décision sur leur participation aux négociations de paix à Genève. Pour l’instant les opposants d’Assad n'ont pas reçu de garanties selon lesquelles la démission du président syrien serait annoncée pendant la conférence de Genève. Or le principal sponsor de l'opposition, l'Arabie saoudite, insiste sur cette condition pour que la conférence se tienne. Riyad souhaite en effet que Genève-2 prive le président syrien du moindre rôle dans le processus de transition et refuse d'évoquer d'autres options pour mettre fin au conflit syrien.
De son côté Moscou a encore confirmé que Damas était prêt à envoyer à Genève une délégation du gouvernement syrien. Le ministre russe des Affaires étrangères Sergueï Lavrov a déclaré qu'il était nécessaire de renoncer une bonne fois pour toutes aux illusions sur la possibilité de "trancher le nœud syrien grâce à une intervention étrangère". La délégation russe espère que cette approche sera reflétée dans le communiqué final de Genève-2 si la conférence avait lieu.
Les illusions de l'Arabie saoudite, qui pense qu'elle réussira indirectement à renverser le régime d'Assad et installer au pouvoir en Syrie un gouvernement sunnite, n'empêcheront pas la communauté internationale de préparer une "feuille de route" pour régler le conflit syrien.
http://fr.ria.ru/presse_russe/20131107/199734943.html
7/11/13
Arsenal chimique en Syrie: les USA demandent l'aide de la Belgique...
ReplyDeleteLes Etats-Unis et les Nations Unies ont sollicité l'aide de la Belgique pour le démantèlement de l'arsenal chimique syrien, rapporte la revue Foreign Policy. L'information est confirmée par les Affaires étrangères.
"Nous avons en effet reçu une demande formelle des Américains", indique un porte-parole, selon qui la forme d'une éventuelle participation est à l'étude aux cabinets du Premier ministre Elio Di Rupo et du ministre de la Défense Pieter De Crem, en concertation avec Washington.
La mise en oeuvre de l'accord international sur la destruction de l'arsenal chimique syrien fait actuellement l'objet d'intenses discussions entre les Etats.
Les Etats-Unis pressent l'Albanie d'accepter d'organiser sur son sol la destruction des armes. Pas trop éloigné de la Syrie, le pays dispose d'une expérience particulière dans ce domaine. En 2007, il a détruit intégralement son propre arsenal, accumulé sous le régime du dictateur communiste Enver Hoxha.
Plusieurs autres pays ont été approchés pour une contribution, notamment la France et la Norvège, selon Foreign Policy. Oslo a décliné.
Belga
http://www.rtbf.be/info/belgique/detail_arsenal-chimique-en-syrie-les-usa-demandent-l-aide-de-la-belgique?id=8130386
7/11/13
Just one Syrian chemical site uninspected: OCPW...
ReplyDeleteTHE HAGUE: Inspectors have verified all but one of Syria's 23 declared chemical weapons sites, the world's watchdog said Thursday, after filming a site that was difficult to access because of the war.
The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said that Syrian personnel had visited one of two remaining sites that they could not visit for security reasons and filmed it with "sealed cameras."
OPCW and UN inspectors have until mid-2014 to destroy Syria's entire chemical arsenal and production facilities under the terms of a US-Russian deal to head off military strikes on President Bashar al-Assad's regime.
"The verification was conducted with the support of sealed cameras used by Syrian personnel as per the inspection team's guidance," the Hague-based OPCW said in a statement.
"The exact geographical location and the time of capture of the footage/images were fully authenticated," it said, adding that the site was in the region of northwestern city Aleppo, a centre of fighting against Assad's regime.
"As per the declaration by Syria, the site was confirmed as dismantled and long abandoned with the building showing extensive battle damage," the OPCW said.
Syria is cooperating with the disarmament operation and has already said it had approximately 1,290 tonnes of chemical weapons and agents as well as 1,230 unfilled chemical munitions, meaning shells, rockets or mortars.
Syria has already destroyed 99 warheads and is expected to destroy 55 more, with Syrian officials reportedly in The Hague facing a November 15 deadline to finalise the plan for the destruction of the chemical arsenal.
Destruction of Syria's declared chemical weapons production facilities has been completed, and all chemicals and precursors placed under seal, the OPCW said last week ahead of a November 1 deadline that it laid down and was backed by the UN Security Council resolution.
The resolution was agreed by the US and Russia to avert military strikes on Syria after deadly chemical weapons attacks outside Damascus in August, which the West blamed on Assad's regime.
The OPCW, based in The Hague, was this year's recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Its Executive Council will use the Syrian declaration to decide by November 15 on "destruction milestones" for Syria's arsenal.
Syria has also sent in a declaration of its chemical weapons activities and facilities, meeting its obligations as a new state party to the Chemical Weapons Convention.
- AFP/ec
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/just-one-syrian-chemical/878254.html
7/11/13