SYRIA: Damacus says it is fully committed to the success of the U.N. ceasefire monitoring mission to the country

Record ID: 280620

  • Title: SYRIA: Damacus says it is fully committed to the success of the U.N. ceasefire monitoring mission to the country
  • Date: 18th April 2012
  • Summary: DAMASCUS, SYRIA (APRIL 17, 2012) (REUTERS) SYRIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY BUILDING SYRIAN FLAG JIHAD MAKDISSI, SYRIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN, TALKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) JIHAD MAKDISSI, SYRIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN, SAYING: "From the Syrian side I can tell you there is full commitment to have a successful mission for Mr. Annan and the protocol is part of this miss
  • Embargoed: 3rd May 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Syrian Arab Republic
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Conflict,International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVACWAJWNNLCHW3TNZEM6OC040DX
  • Story Text: Syria said on Tuesday (April 17) it was fully committed to the success of the U.N. ceasefire monitoring mission to the country.
    The statement came as U.N. officials were negotiating in Damascus a protocol for the deployment of an advanced party of five unarmed blue beret monitors as part of a deal struck by Arab and U.N. envoy Kofi Annan.
    "From the Syrian side I can tell you there is full commitment to have a successful mission for Mr. Annan and the protocol is part of this mission," Syrian foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi told Reuters.
    "We have received the technical team and also today we have done a constructive meeting with the Indian general and this team. We are progressing. I can't go into details but what I can tell you is that we achieved roughly 85 to 90-percent of the protocol. We are moving the right direction, hopefully, soon it will be finalised," he added.
    The Indian general is Abhijit Guha, Deputy Military Advisor at the U.N.'s Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO).
    A five-member initial U.N. monitor team arrived on Sunday (April 15) in the Syrian capital, in line with a U.N. Security Council resolution adopted on Saturday (April 14).
    The team will be joined by two dozen more observers in coming days and will stay in the Sheraton hotel in the centre of Damascus, the same hotel where Arab League monitors stayed during their mission in the country.
    There has been continued violence since the ceasefire took effect last Thursday (April 12), with both the Syrian government and the opposition trading accusations of blame for truce breaches in the unrest which has gone on for 13 months and in which the U.N. says more than 9,000 have been killed.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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