On
Syria,
France Said to
Draft
Statement,
Annan Too Busy
To
Say Who's Paid
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
March 19 --
When the UN
Security
Council
reconvened on
Monday
morning,
French
Ambassador
Gerard Araud
told the press
that
Syria would be
discussed
after the
closed-door
session on the
Council's
"working
methods."
Morocco's
Ambassador
Loulichki was
asked, "What
about the
resolution?"
He turned and
asked, "There
is a
resolution?"
Later
a Council
source told
Inner City
Press, "France
will circulate
a draft
statement,"
which at least
those not in
France's inner
circle
had not yet
seen.
Would it only
express
support for
Kofi Annan's
mission or
would it
address the
weekend's
bombings in
Damascus and
Aleppo? The
source didn't
know. A
Western
source, closer
to France,
indicated it
would concern
the bombings.
Kofi
Annan's
mission as
Joint Special
Envoy of the
UN and Arab
League is far
from
transparent.
Five times
Inner City
Press has
asked the
spokesperson
for Annan's
wan successor
Ban Ki-moon to
name or
confirm who is
on
Annan's team,
and getting
paid by the
UN.
Spokesman
Martin
Nesirky has
repeated that
they are too
busy to say
who they are.
Now
former UN
communications
official Ahmad
Faqzi has
selectively
told
wire service
in Geneva that
"there are
five people
with
expertise in
political,
peacekeeping
and
mediation."
Inner
City Press
has written to
a
representative
at the Kofi
Annan
Foundation, an
official who
was on the
list provided
by the UN to
the Syrian
Mission
of who would
go to
Damascus, and
asked:
Is
Mr.
Guehenno part
of the team?
Did
Nasser
Al Kidwa seek
to go the
first time?
The second
time?
Who
has
gone on the
technical
mission which
started
Sunday?
Which
team
members are
being paid
from the
$900,000
authorized in
the GA
resolution?
How much?
These
are
questions that
Annan's
mission,
fueled with
public funds
from the UN,
should answer.
Watch this
site.
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