'Friends of Syria' meeting starts in Istanbul
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E-mail China.org.cn, April 1, 2012
Meanwhile, the Syrian media on Sunday accused the "Friends of Syria" meeting of aiming to undermine the mission of UN envoy to Syria Kofi Annan.
Launching trenchant criticism on the meeting, the al-Baath daily editorialized that the conference is simply a "regional and international scramble to search for ways to kill more Syrians... with the aim to jump over the mission of Annan."
The paper said that the meeting would yield no fruits "in light of the gradual return of stability climates to Syria and the Syrians' insistence to restore peace and security and embark on a political dialogue."
The Tishrin daily, another mouthpiece of the government, blasted the Qatari and Saudi roles in the Syrian crisis, saying " the most significant challenges encountering the mission of Annan lie in the hostile policies of both Riyadh and Doha towards Syria. "
The al-Thawra newspaper charged that the Istanbul meeting aims to impede Annan's mission, adding that the "enemies" of Syria might also "look for some face-saving exits."
Hours ahead of the "Friend of Syria" conference, Burhan Ghalioun, leader of the broad-based opposition Syrian National Council (SNC), contended that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's acceptance of Annan's intuitive was another "lie and a maneuver" to gain time.
"We have no illusions over the possibility of the mission's success because Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian regime have no credibility to engage in a political process," he said.
Besides, Ghalioun urged the "Friends of Syria" conference to back the arming of rebels. "We have repeatedly called for the arming of the Free Syrian Army. We want the 'Friends of Syria' conference to live up to this demand," he said during a press conference in Istanbul.
Another dissident, Haitham Maleh, who has recently defected from the SNC, said that "nothing would work with the Assad regime but the logic of force," dismissing Annan's mission as a "failure."
Maleh reportedly stressed that neither the Arab League nor Annan's mission would help to curve the bloodletting in Syria, asserting that "the only way to put an end to this tragedy is through arming the Free Syrian Army to break the regime by force."
Joint special envoy of the UN and Arab League (AL) for Syria Kofi Annan, has garnered support to his plan from almost all world leaders. The plan calls for an end to violence in Syria by all parties, a proposal for a cease-fire initiated by the Syrian government, a daily halt in fighting for the delivery of humanitarian aid and treatment for the wounded, as well as talks between the government and opposition.
Syria has officially approved the plan and its stance has drawn the world's consent without shunning aside the possibility of looking for further options should the Syrian government backtracked from its commitment.
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