7 Sep, 2013
No Country Allowed To Take Law Into Its Own Hands: UN-Arab League Envoy
United Nations, Sep 6 2013, (UN News Centre) – The Joint Special Representative of the United Nations and the League of Arab States today stressed that he and other senior diplomats were working “extremely hard” bring Syrian and other concerned parties together for a conference to find a political path out of the crisis in the country.
Following a meeting initiated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the G20 summit in St. Petersburg, Lakhdar Brahimi said the UN has been working hard to prepare for the so-called Geneva II meeting, which would include representatives of Syrian parties as well as senior United States, Russian and UN officials.
The goal of the conference would to be to achieve a political solution to the conflict in Syria through a comprehensive agreement between the Government and the opposition for the full implementation of the Geneva communiqué of 30 June 2012.
Yet, he said, the fate of the conference was “in danger” because of the alleged use of chemical weapons on the outskirts of Damascus, the Syrian capital, on 21 August, “and what may follow as a consequence of that.”
“I have drawn attention to the participants of this meeting today to the possible consequences…I think the United Nations [has no] alternative but too continue to pay close attention to the situation in Syria,” Mr. Brahimi said.
The biomedical and environmental samples taken by the UN chemical weapons inspection team from the alleged 21 August attack in the Ghouta area outside Damascus are currently being analyzed in four European laboratories. Scientists are working “around the clock” to ensure a rapid result but one that also respects the highest professional standards and without compromising its integrity.
Results of the analyses will be shared with Mr. Ban, who will then share them with the 15-member Security Council and all 193 Member States.
Mr. Brahimi warned that no country is allowed to take the law into its own hands and urged that any action on Syria be taken to the Security Council. “International law says that no country is allowed to take the law into their hands; they have to go through the Security Council,” Mr. Brahimi stressed.
Mr. Ban had asked Mr. Brahimi to join him in Russia to push for a political solution to the Syrian conflict.
Full text of remarks by Lakhdar Brahimi, the Joint Special Representative for Syria, following his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
Saint Petersburg, Russia, 6 September 2013 – Thank you very much, indeed, Mr. Secretary. I am extremely grateful to Minister Lavrov for inviting me to this very useful meeting with a number of foreign ministers of countries that are very concerned about the Syrian situation. I think nobody ignores the fact that Syria is today in most serious danger on peace and security, not only for the poor Syrian people and the region of the Middle East, but also for the world.
So we have always been hoping and the Secretary-General has always been appealing to the international community, to the Security Council, to the P5, to pay great attention to this problem and really try to solve it.
On this issue of the alleged use of chemical weapons on the 21st of August, the United Nations is waiting for the work of the investigation team that was there and visited and collected a lot of material. And that material is being analysed and when this work is finished – and it has to be completed according to scientific standards – as soon as it is done, the Secretary-General will communicate the results to the Security Council and the rest of the international community. Then we will call it whatever the results of the investigation say it should be called.
The other thing is that Syria is in very, very serious trouble and we have been asked from time to time, what about use of force by members of the international community? And that, we don’t – I think the Secretary-General or myself – we don’t express personal opinions. We say what international law says. And international law says that no country is allowed to take the law into their hands; they have to go through the Security Council.
In this discussion today, I think we… I have taken this opportunity given to me by this initiative of Minister Lavrov to tell them that we have been working extremely hard with the Americans and the Russians as initiators after the meeting of the 7th of May here, in Moscow, not in Saint Petersburg, between Mr. Lavrov and [US] Secretary of State [John] Kerry. Since then we have been working very hard to prepare for the meeting of Geneva II.
Geneva II is now is in danger because of the event of the 21st of August and what may follow as a consequence of that. I have drawn the attention of the participants of this meeting today to the possible consequences, and expressed hope once again. I think the United Nations does not have any alternative but to continue to pay close attention to the situation in Syria. So I expressed hope that we can continue to work and help the Syrians out.
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