"We are not going to wage war against Bashar al-Assad and send troops against him. France believes that Assad’s ouster cannot be a solution, which will make it possible to resolve the situation in the country. We engage in very difficult and continuous work to achieve a political solution.
These efforts involve negotiations on the issue with the Arab countries, Russia, the United States and Iran.
That’s the diplomatic approach to the problem," the French minister said.
He noted that "it would be possible to avoid further chaos in Syria and the victory of the Islamic State [terrorist group], if the parties jointly decided what the political solution regarding the transition period in Syria might be." "Dialogue with Russia [on Syria] is conducted taking into account the fact that the parties should not mix all problems and focus on the situation in Ukraine, because in this case we will not be able to reach a solution," Fabius added.
He noted that the settlement of the Syrian crisis should be sought on the assumption of forming the transitional government "based on the elements of the current regime [but without Bashar al-Assad] and representatives of the Syrian opposition.".
[tass.ru]
8/9/15
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Austria says fight against Islamic State needs Syria's Assad...
ReplyDeleteThe West should involve Syria's president Bashar al-Assad and his allies Iran and Russia in order to combat Islamic State, Austria's foreign minister said on Tuesday, in some of the most conciliatory comments towards Assad by a Western official.
Most Western countries insist Syria's president must leave power if peace is to be restored, while Iran and Russia say he is part of the solution. That disagreement has derailed efforts to end the four-year civil war.
"We need a pragmatic common approach in this respect including the involvement of Assad in the fight against Islamic State terror," Sebastian Kurz told reporters during a state visit to Tehran.
"In my opinion the priority is the fight against terror. This will not be possible without powers such as Russia and Iran," Kurz said, echoing earlier comments by Iran's president Hassan Rouhani.
Some European Union officials have been privately saying for months that it is time for more communication with Damascus to combat Islamic State, but few senior Western officials have said so publicly.
"One should not forget the crimes that Assad has committed, but also not forget the pragmatic view of the fact that in this fight we are on the same side," he said.
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
8/9/15