European Forum

No measures against Syria from the UN

The Syrian revolts, which commenced in early March with the aim of ousting President Bashar al-Assad and were met with overwhelming military force, have reportedly reached the death toll of 2,900, according to yesterday’s (6th of October) communication of the United Nations human rights office.

The hope of the Syrian people for the increase of international pressure on Bashar al-Assad seems to gradually fade away as the United Nations Security Council failed to introduce measures against Syria. On Wednesday (4th of October) the UN resolution on Syria, drafted by France with the cooperation of Britain, Germany and Portugal, was vetoed by Russia and China. The draft stipulated to impose sanctions on Syria if the Syrian authorities continue their bloody crackdown on pro-democratic protesters. Moscow explained its decision by referring to the necessity of ‘the peaceful settlement of the crisis’, while Beijing said it opposed the idea of ‘interference in [Syria's] internal affairs’. The draft creators and Syrian united opposition groups in exile expressed their disappointment over Russia’s and China’s veto. The opposition said the situation put down the hope for Syrians to oust the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

The reaction of the United States to Russia’s and China’s decisions was also very negative. US ambassador Susan Rice condemned the Security Council for failing ‘to address an urgent moral challenge and a growing threat to regional peace and security’.

However, despite the resolution failure, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan declared his country’s decision to introduce economic sanctions on Damascus, pointing out that Turkey’s measures will target Assad's government and not the Syrian people.

Meanwhile, the protests carry on throughout Syria. Syrian President Al-Assad continues the crackdown on demonstrators, denies reports of human rights abuses, and affirms his government has no choice but to restore law and order. While the state-run Syrian media praises Russia’s and China’s veto, protesters express their dissatisfaction by burning Russian and Chinese flags in their demonstrations.

The activists warn the situation could deteriorate and the country could cascade into an armed conflict.


Sources: BBC News, Reuters, Aljazeera. Image: Flickr.