At
UN
on Syria,
Silence Broken
on Press
Statement, 3
pm Showdown on
PRST?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
March 20 --
Even as the UN
Security
Council met
about
Afghanistan on
Tuesday
morning, the
talk was of
the pending Syria
Presidential
and Press
Statements.
On
the latter,
the
silence
procedure was
broken by the
UK, this
month's
Council
President,
despite the
text being
described to
Inner City
Press by
India's
Permanent
Representative
Hardeep Singh
Puri as the
same terrorism
Press
Statement as
usual, this
time
including the
admonition to
comply with
human rights
while fighting
terrorism.
Inner City
Press asked,
why was
silence
broken? "For
leverage,"
Hardeep Singh
Puri answered.
Later in the
morning Inner
City Press
asked French
Ambassador
Gerard Araud
if his country
had any
problems with
the draft
press
statement. No,
he said -- but
the Press and
Presidential
Statements
will be
adopted
together, or
not at all.
To
support Joint
Special Envoy
Kofi Annan's
mission,
Hardeep Singh
Puri recounted
that
his country,
along with
Togo and South
Africa, had
suggested a
Presidential
Statement,
after the UK
proposed a
resolution.
France
drafted
the
Presidential
Statement,
which Inner
City Press obtained
and put
online
yesterday,
but included
at the end:
The
Security
Council calls
upon the
Syrian
government and
opposition to
commit to work
in good faith
with the Joint
Special Envoy
towards a
peaceful
settlement of
the Syrian
crisis and to
implement
fully and
immediately
his initial
six-point
plan.
The
Security
Council
requests the
Joint Special
Envoy to
update
regularly
the Council on
the progress
of his
activities,
and decides to
review
the
implementation
of the
six-point plan
within 7 days
and to
consider
further
measures.
Inner
City Press
asked French
Ambassador
Gerard Araud
if there would
be a meeting
of
Permanent
Representatives
about this
statement on
Tuesday
afternoon.
He said, if it
is not agreed
to at the
expert level
this morning,
the
Permanent
Representatives
will meet at 3
pm.
A
question is,
does
supporting
Kofi Annan or
his six point
plan imply
supporting the
Arab League
plan,
including on
"political
transition"?
That's an
issue, Hardeep
Singh Puri
said and then
went into the
Council's open
session on
Afghanistan.
It
has been
multiply
confirmed to
Inner City
Press that
Syria refuses
to accept
entry by Arab
League
selected
deputy Nassar
Al Kidwa, if
he comes
representing
the Arab
League.
Meanwhile
Tuesday should
see the UN
belatedly name
or confirm
Jean Marie
Guehenno as
Kofi's "other"
deputy.
Guehenno was
the second of
now four
Frenchman in a
row atop
UN
Peacekeeping.
Some wonder,
does the UN
dream of
sending
peacekeepers
to Syria, as
it dreamed but
was rejected
in Libya?
Watch
this site.
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