Future of Assad in doubt as UN unanimously supports Syria peace process
on
The UN security council has unanimously agreed a resolution endorsing an international roadmap for a peace process in Syria, a rare show of unity among major powers on a conflict that has claimed more than 250,000 lives.
“This council is sending a clear message to all concerned that the
time is now to stop the killing in Syria and lay the groundwork for a
government that the long-suffering people of that battered land can
support,” the US secretary of state, John Kerry, told the 15-nation council after the vote.
The resolution came after Russia
and the US clinched a deal on a text. The two powers have had very
different views on what should happen in Syria, where Islamic State
militants control considerable territory.
Kerry made clear that there were still differences on the future of the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad,
a close ally of Russia and Iran. Western governments want him to be
ousted. The resolution does not touch on the question of Assad’s fate.
“We are under no illusions about the obstacles that exist,” added
Kerry. “There obviously remain sharp differences within the
international community, especially about the future of President
Assad.”
The Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said of the resolution:
“This is a clear response to attempts to impose a solution from the
outside on Syrians on any issues, including those regarding its
president.”
A group of protesters, some holding Syrian revolutionary flags, gather in front of UN headquarters. Photograph: Justin Lane/EPA
The French foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, said talks between the
Syrian government and opposition would only succeed if there were
“guarantees on the departure” of Assad.
Fabius said: “How could this man unite a people that he has in part
massacred? The idea that he could once again stand for elections is
unacceptable to us.”
The text called for the UN to present the council with options for
monitoring a ceasefire within one month of adoption of the resolution.
It also backed a timeline previously agreed in Vienna for talks between
the government on a unity government and opposition, and eventual
elections.
Source: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/dec/18/un-security-council-agree-resolution-on-syrian-peace-process
