Hague: Syria Meeting Agrees Assad Can Have No Role in Future Govt

إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية W460

Western and Arab powers agreed with Syrian opposition leaders Tuesday that President Bashar Assad should be excluded from any future government, but urged the rebels to take part in a peace conference in Geneva.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said after a meeting in London that the rebels had to overcome their differences and commit themselves to the talks in the Swiss city that are due to take place in late November.

But a defiant Assad said he was willing to run for re-election in 2014, a move further likely to anger a key rebel group that has so far refused to take part in the Geneva 2 conference if regime figures are present.

Hague told a press conference after the meeting of the so-called Friends of Syria that they had agreed a "number of important steps" during a meeting with Ahmad Jarba, the head of the Syrian National Coalition.

"We are as clear as he is that Assad has no role in a peaceful and democratic Syria," Hague said.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry urged the world to help find a negotiated settlement for Syria, adding that the country itself could disintegrate if more is not done.

"The only alternative to a negotiated settlement is continued if not increased killing," Kerry told reporters.

"We believe that the state of war will simply lead to the implosion of the state of Syria."

The London talks grouped Britain, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates and the United States, together with Syrian opposition leaders.

The Syrian National Council, a key member of Jarba's Syrian National Coalition, has already said it opposes the Geneva conference and threatened to quit the umbrella opposition group if Assad's regime takes part.

Hague said that Jarba had to "carry others with him" ahead of a meeting of leading rebel groups in early November, when they will decide whether or not to take part in the Geneva meeting.

He added: "Despite the enormous challenges faced by the Syrian opposition, we urged the National Coalition to commit itself fully to the Geneva 2 process, and lead and form the heart of any opposition delegation."

In a communique after the meeting, the Friends of Syria agreed that when a transitional government was established "Assad and his close associates with blood on their hands will have no role in Syria.

"There must be accountability for acts committed during the present conflict."

'I don't see why I shouldn't run in the next election'

Notably absent from London's meeting is key Syria ally Russia, which has dismissed such gatherings in the past, saying they do not represent all Syrian people.

Hague also warned of the need to bolster moderate forces in Syria, where an estimated 115,000 people have been killed since March 2011 and several million more made homeless.

"The longer this conflict goes on, the more sectarian it becomes and the more extremists are able to take hold, that is why we are making this renewed effort to get the Geneva peace process going," he said.

The United States and Russia have been trying to organize the Geneva conference on the heels of the deal they reached for the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons in the wake of a deadly poison gas attack in August widely blamed on Damascus.

But Assad dealt an early blow to peace hopes, saying in an interview Monday that the factors are not in place for the conference to succeed.

"No time has been set, and the factors are not yet in place if we want (Geneva 2) to succeed," Assad told Lebanon-based pan-Arab satellite channel Al-Mayadeen, adding that there was no guarantee about "which forces are taking part."

Assad also gave no hint of releasing his grip on power.

"Personally, I don't see any reason why I shouldn't run in the next election," Assad declared.

Hague earlier said that Iran -- Damascus's main regional ally -- could also play a role in the Geneva talks if it backed the need for a transitional government in Syria.

Comments 24
Thumb mckinl 22 October 2013, 17:21

What a surprise ...

Thumb _mowaten_ 22 October 2013, 18:33

lol eh "agreed" as if it was not the case before. it's crazy how they take no shame in announcing their intention for regime change in a sovereign country, which is illegal under international law.

Missing peace 22 October 2013, 18:44

killing civilians and shelling civilian targets is also illegal under international law, Mr assad defender... LOL

Thumb _mowaten_ 22 October 2013, 18:49

true, so those who armed the terrorists to go fight in syria have an even heavier responsibility.

Thumb _mowaten_ 22 October 2013, 18:51

a national army has not only the right, but the duty, to fight violent armed groups. and please dont even try the bedtime story of "noble revolutionaries" nobody can pretend to believe it anymore after all we've seen.

Missing peace 22 October 2013, 18:55

"to fight violent armed groups."

yes but assad did worse by killing dozens of innocent unarmed civilians... ie : dozens killed while queuing for bread, shelling of hospitals... and so on....
i see you still defend his butchery... good soldier you are...

Thumb _mowaten_ 23 October 2013, 11:21

peace: keep your propaganda for fox news and bbc, not working here.

tonyfaris: are you talking to peace?

ice-man: still being very creative with your copy-pastes i see.

Thumb geha 22 October 2013, 17:25

the repercussions of the stand of KSA are starting to appear.
this stand will put iran and the Syrian regime in a corner after the breakthrough they have made during the Iranian visit to the US.
the US is starting to realize they cannot just ignore the Arab world.
and still, the best is still to come... :)

Thumb joker37 22 October 2013, 17:56

You have surpassed wishful thinking and went straight into being delusional. This has been what the west has called for since day one. As usual the west is good at giving verbal promises but bad at backing them up so there is nothing new here.
saudi arabia is pitiful. It has wasted billions in syria and splintered the arab world further. It has come to realize its own powerlessness and how little its opinions count in the west.
keep trying to see the glass half full dear.

Missing zahle_nights5 22 October 2013, 18:06

What this means is that the ASSad will be gone soon... This time it will not up to him whether he stays or he goes... He will be gone PERIOD.
After that, the civilian massacre files will be open and ASSad will be put on trial... The end is near for this low life piece of garbage.

Thumb jabal10452 22 October 2013, 18:57

Assad is one wily SOB. You'll see: just like his father before him, he will manage to outmanoeuvre the West and stay in power long after his western counterparts have run their mandates. It is sad - he is a brutal dictator in my opinion, but that's how it is.

The only thing that will remove Assad from his throne is death.

Thumb Dr.I.Mughniyeh_theheadless 22 October 2013, 20:18

yeah how dare they, they have no shame..
on the other hand it's not like they want to decide who should be president of another country and then order under occupation and threats the extension that president's term "for one time only" contrary to that other country's constitution twice, because according to one foolish hypocrite claims "the one who decides that is Assad himself" Assad can be either Hafez or Bashar.

Missing lebanese4life 22 October 2013, 21:24

He still has the right to run for president and will probably win because he still has the majority on his side. The syrian people themselves know whats been actually happening in their country.

Missing lebanese4life 22 October 2013, 21:27

Funny the leading rebel groups are composed of al-qaeda affiliated jihadi's. What happened to the war on terrorism?

Missing lebanese4life 22 October 2013, 21:29

The resistance who is protecting lebanon

Thumb chrisrushlau 22 October 2013, 21:37

Naharnet regrets a typographical error in this story as it first appeared. The headline should read, "Hague: Syria Meeting Agrees Its Members Can Have No Role in Future Govt".

Thumb _mowaten_ 23 October 2013, 12:49

hahaha but no, they cant say that it would create a dangerous precedent of making a prediction that actually comes true ;)

Missing lebanese4life 22 October 2013, 22:35

They are coming under attack by the salafi wehebe terrorists, they have the right to protect the shia people and villages. extremist put out fatwas to rape any shia women. They need help when no one else is helping them.

Missing lebanese4life 22 October 2013, 22:51

Exactly the Arab powers are dictatorships who oppress their own people who don't have religious freedom or rights. They are ruled by a family. I pretty sure Syrian gov't isn't owned by a family the parliament is full of representatives who actually represent their people.

Thumb _mowaten_ 23 October 2013, 12:51

tonyfarris showing us how his brain works and how much he is able to understand from what he reads.

Missing VINCENT 23 October 2013, 00:43

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia vs. Iran, fka Persia

Missing -karim_m1-- 23 October 2013, 11:17

You shouldnt point fingers at others when you're a pole dancer for the Saudis.

Thumb _mowaten_ 23 October 2013, 12:51

LOL dont be so harsh karim, he's only part time pole dancer for the saudis. during the day he's a show shiner in israel.

Thumb _mowaten_ 23 October 2013, 12:53

shoe*