The foreign ministers of Russia and the Arab League agreed on a plan for a peace settlement in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov reports after a meeting with the ministers of the Arab League in Cairo.
Lavrov says the plan consists of five items.
Among these items are: the end to violence from any side, the creation of a monitoring mechanism, unimpeded delivery of humanitarian assistance to all Syrians, support for the mission of the Special Representative of the UN General Secretary Kofi Annan in Syria and the inadmissibility of interference in the affairs of the Syrians from the outside.
"We think these five points are of fundamental importance. They are addressed to all parties in Syria," Lavrov says.
According to the Minister, Russia considers it important to support the efforts of Annan in Syria and "hopes it will lead to a dialogue between Syrian parties about the future of this country," RIA Novosti reports.
Terrorists impede the solution to the problem, bring chaos and destabilize the situation, Assad states.
"We are ready to support all honest efforts to lead Syria out of the condition into which it fell because of outside interference," Assad added.
Annan is the special envoy of the UN and the League of Arab States (LAS) to resolve the conflict in Syria.
In turn, the former UN General Secretary, charged with the mission to resolve the crisis in Syria, confirms that he intends to adhere to a "fair, independent and neutral position" in the approach to the implementation of the tasks assigned to him. Annan says he believes "in the possibility of reaching a peaceful solution which will return peace to Syria and allow the people of this ancient country to realize their aspirations."
At the same time, about 100 Syrians representing the opposition to the current Syrian President Bashar Assad, today held a picket at the headquarters of the League of Arab States (LAS) in the center of the Egyptian capital. The demonstration took place simultaneously with the appearance of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the opening session of the Council of the League at the level of foreign ministers, and his talks with Arab ministers.
An increased police cordon has been set up in front of the building of the Arab League. No incidents have been reported. After political consultations conducted with the Arab League the Russian delegation left the Arab League building without difficulty and went to the international airport of Cairo.
The government of Qatar believes that the actions of the Syrian rebels can be seen as self-defense, while opposition members should not be considered an "armed gang.” This statement was made at a meeting with foreign ministers of Arab States in Cairo by the Prime Minister of Qatar, Hamad bin Jasim bin Jaber al-Thani, RBC reports with reference to Reuters.
According to him, a mere truce is not enough. "Those responsible for the massacre must necessarily be brought to justice, and the imprisoned opposition members must be released," the representative of Qatar says.
Statements by the Prime Minister of Qatar have been made in response to the comments by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, who explained that Moscow is ready to actively cooperate with the international community to resolve the Syrian crisis, but urged not to place the entire responsibility for the conflict on one side.
For a year Syria has been living in conditions of continuing anti-government protests, which in recent months have turned into violent clashes. There are daily reports of deaths - both of civilians and of uniformed personnel. According to the UN figures, the total number of victims in the country has exceeded 7500.
