As
Obama
Speaks, UN Syria Resolution Not Seen, Waiting for Plane &
Tarmac?
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 19 -- At the UN on Thursday, as President Obama spoke on
the Middle East, spin
continued about a possible Security Council
resolution on Syria. A Western Permanent member of the Council --
not
the US -- bragged that it has a text ready.
But
others scoffed
at that. “When are they going to show us - on the plane?” Russian
Deputy Permanent Representative Alexander Pankin asked Inner City
Press, referring to Council Ambassadors' week-long trip to Africa
which started later on Thursday.
Another
Council
member mused to Inner City Press that if the rationale for a
resolution on Syria, even a weak one, was that it would “send a
message” to the Assad government and maybe even Yemen, that message
would be seriously undercut by confining the resolution's adoption to
“a tarmac in Kadugli, Sudan.”
Inner
City Press
joked that maybe
Sudanese official Ahmed Haroun, indicted by the
International Criminal Court but flown around by the UN at least
twice, would be there.
Ban & Assad, UN Panel of Experts Report not shown but here
The
Council's
first meeting on Thursday was about the Middle East, consultations
after a briefing by envoy Robert Serry. During the consultations,
while the UK spoke about Syria, it did not mentioned a text,
according to multiple Council members. So where IS this text? Watch
this site.
* * *
At
UN
on Syria, No Resolution Seen Despite 9 Votes Projected, “9
for Nothing"
By
Matthew
Russell Lee
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 18 -- As France continues to insist
it has or is near to
having nine votes for a Security Council resolution on Syria,
numerous Council members on Wednesday disagreed, telling Inner City
Press that had no even been shown a draft on which to agree or
disagree.
Portugal's
Permanent
Representative Cabral told the Press that “I haven't even
seen a resolution yet so that seems a bit strange” to speak of nine
votes in favor. Two other non-permanent members told Inner City
Press much the same thing.
Another
DPR told
Inner City Press “it's not even about nine -- what about the
vetoes?” Russia's Deputy Permanent Representative Alexander Pankin
scoffed, “Nine for nothing.”
China's
Permanent
Representative Li Baodong pointed at UK foreign minister William
Hague being more quiet recently on any Syria resolution.
Still,
others
predicted that something -- something weak but something -- could be
done. The Council leaves for Africa for a week beginning May 19. Watch
this site.
* * *
As
UN
Report on Iran Arms Sales to Syria Put Online, France Talks of
9 Votes
By
Matthew
Russell Lee, Exclusive
UNITED
NATIONS,
May 17 -- With the days of UN
Security Council inaction on
Syria mounting, on Tuesday Council President Gerard Araud of France
anounced in a closed door meeting that the Council can meet and vote
anywhere, including on the trip to Africa that starts on May 20.
With
Alain Juppe
bragging that there are almost the nine required votes to pass a
Council resolution on Syria, it seems that France is counting on
neither Russia or China vetoing the resolution.
The Permanent
Representative of one of these told Inner City Press on Tuesday that
“Hague of the UK hasn't been talking so much about Syria recently
-- now the UK is back to focusing on Libya.”
On
Libya, another
Council source pointed at the 10-0-5 vote on Resolution 1973,
focusing specifically on the African countries that rather than
abstain with Russia, China, Brazil, India and Germany voted for the
resolution.
While
the content
of the draft Syria resolution being referred to be France is said by
others to be “weak” -- modeled on the Council's first press
statement on Libya back in February -- it is worth noting Russia's
complaints about the UN Panel of Expert report alleging Iranian arms
transfers to Syria.
Inner
City Press
has obtained a copy of the Iran Panel of Experts report, and as a
public service is putting it online here.
As
regards Syria,
the UN Iran
Panel of Experts report states:
The
Panel
notes that most reported incidents of conventional arms-related
violations involve Syria, which has a long and close relationship
with Iran. In all such incidents inspected by the Panel, prohibited
material was carefully concealed to avoid routine inspection and hide
the identity of end-users. It is likely that other transfers took
place undetected and that other illicit shipments were identified but
not reported to the Committee....
The
vessel
Hansa India, chartered by the Islamic Republic of Iran
Shipping Lines (IRISL) left Bandar Abbas, Iran on 25 September 2009,
destined for Latakia Port (Syria) via Damietta Port (Egypt). It was
stopped and searched by the United States Navy in the Red Sea en
route to Damietta and in conformity with instructions received from
the German authorities, the vessel’s flag State, instead of
offloading the cargo in Damietta (the original port of discharge),
the Hansa India was instructed to go to Malta Freeport. In Malta
Freeport, the cargo was inspected upon arrival by the Maltese
authorities. The cargo was found to contain bullet casings and blank
disks....
While
en
route from Damietta, Egypt, to Latakia, Syria, the MV Francop was
intercepted on 3/4 November 2009 by the Israeli Navy and diverted to
the Port of Ashdod where the ammunition was unloaded, inventoried and
dispersed for safekeeping at a variety of Israeli Defence Force
depots...
YasAir
Cargo
(Turkey) Turkey reported to the Committee on 28 March 2011
that between 19-21 March 2011 they had inspected a YasAir Cargo
Airlines transport aircraft at Diyarbakir Airport, Turkey
(S/AC.50/2011/COMM.31). The aircraft had been en-route from Iran to
Syria. Arms were found onboard in nineteen crates declared as “auto
spare parts.” They comprised 60 Kalshnikov rifles, 14 BKS (Bixi)
machine guns, 7920 rounds of Kalashnikov ammunition, 560 60mm mortars
and 1288 120mm mortars.
Victoria
(Israel)
Israel reported to the Committee on 28 March 2011 that on
15 March 2011 the Israeli Navy boarded the MV Victoria, which had
originated its voyage in Latakia Port, Syria and was en route to Port
of Alexandria, Egypt (S/AC.50/2011/COMM.30). Three crates of arms
were found hidden inside shipping containers, comprising 232 120mm
mortars, 2280 60mm mortars, six NASR 1 (C 704) anti-ship missiles,
two Kelvin Hughes radars, two control stations, two C 704 launchers
and 66,240 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition. The arms had been unloaded at
Ashdod Port in Israel and stored...
Syria
is
the stated destination of six out of the nine incidents of
conventional arms transfers reported to the Committee. The Government
of the Syrian Arab Republic, in a letter dated 12 January 2010
(S/AC.50/2010/COMM.1), underlined the fact that “the Francop vessel
was not carrying anything that pertained to Syria” and denied the
allegations. The Panel awaits Syria’s response to its queries.
Watch
this site.
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