WarSclerotic

Clinton Meets Syria Opposition in Geneva as U.S. Envoy Sent Back – Businessweek.

By Nicole Gaouette

Dec. 7 (Bloomberg) — Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met for almost two hours with Syrians seeking to end the rule of President Bashar al-Assad, a sign of U.S. determination to see Assad’s regime end.

Clinton met yesterday with members of the Syrian National Council, a coalition of opposition groups, shortly after the State Department announced it was sending Ambassador Robert Ford back there. Ford was pulled out on Oct. 24 due to fears for his safety.

“His return demonstrates our continued solidarity with the Syrian people and the value we place on Ford’s efforts to engage Syrians on their efforts to achieve a peaceful and democratic transition,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement yesterday. The U.S. expects the Syrian government to fulfill its obligation to protect diplomatic personnel, he added.

Clinton said she is listening to Syrian opposition plans to oust the Assad regime and shift their country to democracy. She urged them to protect universal rights, the rule of law and minorities. She also urged the different opposition groups in the coalition to work together.

“If Syrians unite, they together can succeed in moving their country to that better future,” Clinton said. “We are well aware that there is a lot of hard work to be done. There are many Syrians in exile. We are committed to helping their country make this transition.”

Legitimate Opposition

A State Department official present at the meeting said the U.S. considers the council to be a leading and legitimate representative of Syrians seeking a peaceful, democratic transition. The official wasn’t authorized to speak on the record. Clinton spent almost two hours with the group, the official said.

The seven coalition representatives at the meeting told Clinton that they are seeking a peaceful, orderly transition in which Assad, his family and key regime figures would leave Syria after transferring power to a provisional government with limited authority leading to elections, the official said. They told Clinton the end result would be a Syrian-designed democracy, one in which citizenship would transcend sect or gender, he said.

They made no reference to holding Assad or other leaders accountable or to methods of reconciling social, ethnic or political divisions created by the violence that has wracked Syria since protests began in March, according to the official.

Seeking Assad’s Exit

Clinton expressed hope that Assad would see merit in leaving and commended the council plan as measured, deliberate and devoid of revenge, the official said.

While the U.S. is in touch with other opposition groups, the official said, the administration has been impressed with the progress this council has made unifying the opposition within and outside Syria.

One member of the ethnically and religiously diverse group suggested the U.S. formally recognize the council, as it did the National Transition Council in Libya, which now temporarily governs that country. Clinton responded by saying that, for now, they should focus on outreach to minorities, the official said.

The regime is playing “divide and conquer” with minority communities in Syria, the official said, pitting one against the other and suggesting they have more to fear if another sect comes to power than if the Assad regime stays.

Minority Outreach

The group said minority outreach would be their top priority, to which they would dedicate significant resources. They will also focus on detailed planning and diplomacy, the official said.

They asked Clinton to place a very high priority on addressing the killings in Syria and spoke of the need to protect civilians in Homs and Hama, scenes of some of the worst violence. They told Clinton of reports that security forces were using rape as a weapon against men and women and were targeting children.

The fastest way to create “safety zones” for these civilians would be if Syria would approve the Arab League request to send more than 500 observers to the country, the group told Clinton.

The council believes that, if they can get observers on the ground, chances are the regime won’t do its worst, they told Clinton, according to the official.

Second Meeting

Clinton had met Syrian opposition figures once previously, in August, shortly before the U.S. began explicitly calling for Assad to step down.

All seven of the representatives are exiles. Many opposition figures inside Syria are afraid to leave because they may not be allowed to return.

Ford was due to arrive back in Syria early today. He was recalled to Washington from Syria in October, a month after a violent mob of government supporters hurled concrete blocks at his car and attacked it with iron bars while Ford visited an opposition lawyer.

“He will continue the work he was doing previously; namely, delivering the United States’ message to the people of Syria; providing reliable reporting on the situation on the ground; and engaging with the full spectrum of Syrian society on how to end the bloodshed and achieve a peaceful political transition,” State Department spokesman Mark Toner said in a statement in Washington.

–With assistance from Kate Andersen Brower in Washington. Editors: Terry Atlas, Jim Rubin.

To contact the reporter on this story: Nicole Gaouette in Geneva at ngaouette@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Silva at msilva34@bloomberg.net

Explore posts in the same categories: Uncategorized

This entry was posted on December 7, 2011 at 8:12 AM and is filed under Uncategorized. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.