Syria Commits to April 10 Withdrawal Plan

Associated Press

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, center, at the ?Friends of Syria" conference in Istanbul on Sunday.� Foreign ministers from 60 countries were in attendance.

Syria?s government has promised that its armed forces would withdraw from population centers by April 10 and stop shooting within 48 hours after that date if rebels also stop, the special emissary attempting to end the violent year-old uprising in Syria told the United Nations Security Council on Monday.

The special emissary, Kofi Annan, also told the Security Council that his team had held constructive talks with anti-government forces in the Syria conflict as part of an attempt to gain their adherence to his cease-fire plan. It has been widely expected that rebels would wait for the Syria government?s forces to stop shooting before they would agree to reciprocate.

While the latest diplomatic scrambling provided a specific date for when the violence could abate, it was unclear whether that represented a meaningful breakthrough to halt the conflict, which has left more than 9,000 people dead since President Bashar al-Assad moved to crush political opposition inspired by the Arab Spring movement in March 2011. Even as Mr. Annan was reporting progress, there was widespread skepticism over it.

The Syrian government?s commitment came a day after a large conference of nations, including many Arab nations, Turkey and the United States, moved closer to a direct intervention in the conflict, partly on concern that Mr. Annan?s diplomacy would be ineffective. Participants in the ?Friends of Syria? conference agreed to provide equipment and money to the array of rebel forces known as the Free Syrian Army seeking to end President Assad?s grip on power.

The conference in Istanbul, Turkey, which was also attended by representatives of the Syrian National Council, a loose affiliation of anti-Assad exiles, was assailed by Mr. Assad?s government as an ?enemies of Syria? plot, intended to undermine Mr. Annan?s effort, and as the equivalent of an act of war on Syria.

Mr. Annan, the former secretary general appointed by the United Nations and Arab League to seek a negotiated end to the uprising in Syria, spoke to the Security Council privately over a video connection from Geneva. The American ambassador to the United Nations, Susan E. Rice, who is the current president of the Security Council, briefed reporters afterward on Mr. Annan?s discussions. Ahmad Fawzi, Mr. Annan?s spokesman, also provided some detail via email.

Ms. Rice said Mr. Annan had urged the Syrian government to immediately begin implementing his plan ? as it had previously agreed to do ? and that the Syrian government had pledged to adhere to the troop pullback provision of Mr. Annan?s plan by April 10. Mr. Fawzi said the cease-fire would go into effect within 48 hours of the completion of that pullback.

Speaking as the representative of the United States, Ms. Rice expressed wariness that the Syrian government would honor such a pledge.

?We have seen promises made and promises broken,? she said. ?We have seen commitments to end violence followed by massive intensification of violence. The proof is in the actions, not the words.?

She also said that United Nations peacekeeping arm would begin planning for how to monitor a cease-fire in Syria, even though many necessary elements of such a monitoring ? most notably the Syrian government?s agreement ? had not been resolved.

Speaking to reporters later, Syria?s United Nations ambassador, Bashar Jaafari, said Syria was committed to Mr. Annan?s plan and that ?all the details will be part of the final commitment of everybody, not only the Syrian government.?

Asked about the ?Friends of Syria? meeting on Sunday, Mr. Jaafari spoke harshly ? particularly toward Turkey, once one of Mr. Assad?s strongest supporters. Turkey is now calling Mr. Assad?s government illegitimate, is hosting armed anti-Assad groups and is providing a haven for thousands of Syrian refugees.

?The so-called conference of the enemies of Syria is in itself a violation and contradiction of Kofi Annan?s mission,? Mr. Jaafari said. ?This is a parallel track set up by enemies of Syria to compete with Kofi Annan?s mission, maybe to undermine his mission.?

The policies of the Turkish government, he said, are ?the enemy of Syria. This is a declaration of war by this country.? Mr. Jaafari also said the Turks ?are calling for a change of regime around the clock. This is not a friendly reaction by a neighbor government.?

Reporting was contributed by Steven Lee Myers from Istanbul, Turkey, and Anne Barnard and Hwaida Saad from Beirut, Lebanon, and an employee of The New York Times in Damascus, Syria.

Source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=690bb61aa57de0c51737679548024fe2

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