At
UN
Libya Briefing, UK Asks To Hear From Amos on Deraa, Syria Asks Equal
Time
By
Matthew
Russell Lee, Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 9 -- During the Libya briefing of the UN Security
Council Monday afternoon, a Western Council member let it be known
that they would be “raising” Syria.
While
some wondered
if this meant the draft resolution there've been rumblings about
since Lebanon shot down the draft press statement in the Council,
sources tell Inner City Press that the UK has asked UN Emergency
Relief Coordinator Baroness Valerie Amos to give a briefing on Syria
when she is done with Libya.
It
saves the
Council time, said the source, from a delegation skeptical of the
Western moves on Libya, Yemen and Syria. “Rather than have Amos
come back another day for a briefing on Syria.”
But another,
higher placed source like that when Syrian Permanent Representative
Bashar Ja'afari arrived in the middle of the Libya consultation, it was
to demanded to be heard when Syria arises. That would require an open
meeting (since non-Council members can't attend consultation).
Earlier on
Monday, the UN confirmed at its noon briefing, without giving details,
that it has
thus far been unable to get into Deraa. Watch this site.
* * *
At
UN
on
Syria, Russia Tells France to Stick to Lebanon, No Resolution
Yet
By
Matthew
Russell
Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May
6 -- There was a fight between two members of the
Security Council in closed door consultations about whether the
crackdown in Syria is a threat to international peace and security,
UN envoy on Council Resolution 1559 Terje Roed-Larsen told the Press
on Friday morning.
Further
reporting
by
Inner City Press identifies the two members as France and Russia.
Specifically, multiple sources tell Inner City Press that Russian
Permanent Representative Vitaly Churkin re-entered the Council and
took issue with his French counterpart Gerard Araud, saying that the
1559 briefing is about Lebanon, not Syria.
Other
Western
members
of the Council note that they too, not only France, raised
Syria, as linked with the situation in Syria. But, they say, Churkin
was in and out of the meeting, and heard only Araud, who is this
month's Security Council president.
The
result of this
statement by
Roed-Larsen, who refused to answer Inner City Press
about him taking a UN staff member with him on a purportedly personal
trip to Bahrain last month, were reports that the Western drive for
a
resolution on Syria was raised and shot down on Friday.
In
fact, Western
sources say, it has yet to be formally raised.
The
backdrop is
how far the Western countries have gone with the mandate gave them in
Libya, with absentions from Russia and China. Now other countries,
including other abstainers but even some members which voted in favor
of Resolution 1973 on Libya, are dubious about even beginning a
similar process on Syria.
Meanwhile,
while
Araud
publicly complained on May 3 that the Security Council's
procedures are “boring,” just a bunch of speeches, complaints are
made that a reform instituted under the UK presidency in November
2010, of letting members cut it in consultation, as been ended by the
French, demanding that countries sign in for their interventions. We
aim to have more on this - watch this site.
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