French Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ spokesman, Mr. Valero, answered a few questions about Syria on the daily press briefing of Monday, the 13th of February 2012.
Questions :
What are your reactions to the decisions by the Arab League regarding the following points:
1. The demand for the formation of an Arab-international peacekeeping force for Syria?
2. The “freezing” of diplomatic cooperation with the Syrian regime?
3. “Political and military” support for the Syrian opposition?
4. Support for the holding of a meeting of the Friends of Syria group in Tunis on February 24?
In this regard, do you have a clearer idea of the format of this group and of the proposals that you will make to it?
Has France been invited to this meeting of the Friends of Syria group in Tunis on February 24?
What is France’s position regarding the Arab League’s demand to send a UN-Arab contingent to Syria to stop the massacres?
Can the free world continue to allow the Syrian army to destroy the cities of Homs and Hama without any major international response as in 1982?
Sergey Lavrov has just announced that Russia is examining the Arab League’s proposal to send a joint UN-Arab force to Syria. Does that mean that there’s a slight shift in the Russian position?
Is France prepared to send French blue helmets to Syria as it did to Lebanon?
Despite everything, the Arab League was a potential interlocutor who had contacts and was able to convey messages to the Damascus regime. This opportunity now seems to be in jeopardy and several Western ambassadors - from major powers at least - are no longer on the ground. What channel of diplomatic communication – low-profile or otherwise – does France and its partners intend to use in order to communicate with or influence Damascus following this weekend’s events – Russia? Should we now assume that all communication with Bashar al-Assad and his government has been definitively broken off, except in the case of Moscow which is still in contact with Damascus?
Answer :
France paid very close attention to the work of the Arab League on February 12 in Cairo and commends the sustained mobilization of the League which is continuing to lead the international community toward achieving a peaceful resolution of the Syrian crisis.
France fully supports the creation of the “Friends of Syria group” and will actively participate in the conference in Tunis on February 24.
France expresses its solidarity with the Syrian people and shares the Arab League’s condemnation of the escalating crackdown by the Syrian authorities. It welcomes the fact that the Arab League has, following the example of the EU, decided to implement new sanctions against the Syrian regime.
It approves the decision to appoint an Arab League special envoy to Syria, to offer strong support to the Syrian opposition and to call for a strong political statement by the UN.
France is in close contact with its partners regarding the organization of the conference in Tunis. In our opinion, this group should carry out its work on the basis of the Arab initiative and its format should be broad and reflect the growing international consensus on the Syrian crisis.
Regarding all of the Arab League’s proposals to the UN, they should be examined in the relevant forums. We reaffirm that the deadlock at the Security Council is shameful and that we must find a way to support the Syrian people despite this deadlock.
Regarding our cooperation with Russia, I want to reaffirm that the Ministre d’Etat will have the opportunity to discuss the Syrian crisis with Mr. Lavrov on Thursday in Vienna.
Regarding our diplomatic relations with Syria, I reaffirm that the Ministre d’Etat recalled, for the second time, our ambassador in Damascus for consultations last week. Our operations in Syria have been considerably reduced. At this stage, there are no plans to close our embassy in Damascus, which has a key role in the current context. We’ve stopped government cooperation but we are continuing our dialogue with the civilian population.
Regarding the question of lending support to the Syrian opposition, France has continuously supported the opposition and encouraged it to unite around a democratic platform. On October 10, the Ministre d’Etat met the leaders of the Syrian National Council. The Arab League’s resolution makes no mention of offering military support to the opposition.
In summary, faced with the brutal crackdown that the Syrian regime is continuing to impose, France supports the Arab League in its diplomatic, political and humanitarian actions to put an end to the Syrian tragedy.
