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Transcript of press stakeout by Joint Special Envoy Kofi Annan after briefing the Security Council via video link - Geneva

11 July 2012  – Good evening and thank you for your patience. I have just come from briefing the Council

and we discussed the crisis as you can imagine in Syria, my recent trip to the region and the outcome of 

the Action Group meeting here in Geneva. And the Council is now discussing what the next steps should

be and what action they should take, so we should hear something from them in the next few days. Since it

is so late, let’s go straight to questions.

Question: Mr. Special Envoy, there are two points you can c larify for us. The first point is about what you

have said after the meeting with President Bashar al Assad, about the three months time for a complete

ceasefire step by step if I understand well. And another point here today, I listened to the President of the

Syrian National Council, Abdelbaset Sieda, and he said you did not discuss with them any proposal or 

anything before your meeting with President Bashar al Assad and they said we don’t agree with the

outcome of your meeting with President Bashar al Assad.

JSE: First of all let me say there was no question of three months. The operating vehicle, or tool, is the six-

point plan which is endorsed by the Security Council in resolutions 2042 and 2043. That frames everything.

Within that framework the discussion we had was to take action at those locations where one has such

horrific violence that you can’t get in humanitarian assis tance, people who are trapped couldn’t get out, and

work out ceasefire arrangements at these localities with possibly the help of UNSMIS. This does not free

anybody from the broader obligation of the ceasefire as indicated in the plan. So that is the idea -- whether 

it is in Homs, Hama or wherever. The question of consultation before going to see President Assad; this

issue and this approach came after the discuss ion on the ground and in fact, the monitors who are on the

ground will discuss, also on the ground, with the opposition. And my team here in their contacts with the

opposition outside will be doing the same. I couldn’t have discussed the proposal with them before I went

in, because there was no such proposal on the table.

Question: Mr. Kofi Annan, if I understood well, you got some support in the countries you have just visited.Could you please elaborate on the kind of support and also concretely, what are the actions that they are

going to take in order to put pressure on Syria?

JSE: First of all, when we met here as an Action Group, all the members of the Action Group undertook to

maintain sustained and effective pressure on the parties to implement the Security Council resolutions and

first of all to take steps to stop the violence so that we can move on to the political dialogue. In both Iran

and Iraq, the governments committed to supporting the six-point plan. They supported the idea of political

transition, which will be Syrian-led and allow the Syrians to decide what their future political dispensation

will be. Obviously they are going to use their influence in talking to the government and the parties in

moving in that direction.

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Question: My question is about the United Nations Mission, what is its future because it’s a whole month

almost that there is nothing, no activities. And I also would also ask how you evaluate the Russian

proposition, the draft resolution to extend the mandate of the mission. Thank you.

JSE: Yes, this is an issue before the Security Council. In fact, we do have a Russian resolution on the table

and the British Ambassador indicated that the P3 would also be putting a resolution on the table shortly.

The Secretary-General’s report is before them and he has given options as to what should be done and the

decision is up to the Council.

Question: From what we understood, the outcome of the Action Group Meeting the Saturday before lastwas a very rare and highly valued one. But last week we read reports of your interview with Le Monde,

where you said something like the efforts to mediate for the Syrian conflict had kind of failed. So we were

kind of confused. Exactly what did you say, what did you mean and was the sentence taken out of 

context?

JSE: Let me repeat or say what I meant: that we have not been successful so far, we have so far not

succeeded in ending the violence and moving forward, and it is still the fact today. And I was urging all

governments to work together, to work together to press the parties and to support the one mediation effort

so we can succeed in the goal we all share. And if we unite --and this issue came up in the Council again

today-- if the Council speaks with one voice, that voice is much more powerful than when it is divided. And

in the region, governments have common interests. First of all, we all want to protect the Syrian people, we

all want to see the end to the conflict, we all want to see an end to violence, we all want to make sure itdoes not get out of hand, that the conflict doesn’t get out of hand and spread to the region. So we have lots

of common interests. How do we work together to achieve that common interest rather than move in

different directions, in a manner where everyone loses and the Syrians will become the greatest victims.

Question: Mr. Annan, did you discuss with Mr. Assad about the election of an interlocutor to begin the

dialogue with the opposition? How is that going?

JSE: In all frankness yes, we discussed [t his]. He did offer a name and I indicated that I wanted to know a

bit more about that individual. So we are at that stage. Thank you very much.