Source: The Hindu
Amid high drama at the United Nations Security Council
(UNSC), Russia and China have spiritedly opposed a European-Arab draft
that seeks to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as the first step
towards the establishment of democracy in the troubled Arab nation.
Citing
the principle of sovereignty and advocating a peaceful internal
dialogue, Russian Ambassador to the U.N. Vitaly Churkin said during an
animated debate on Tuesday that there were alternative ways to end the
bloodshed in Syria other than by the eviction of Mr. Assad by foreign
powers through the U.N. route.
Questioning the
legality of the proposed resolution, Mr. Churkin said the UNSC did not
have the mandate to interfere in the domestic affairs of a sovereign
state. “The Council cannot prescribe ready recipes for the outcome of
domestic political processes. It is not in the [U.N.] Charter”. Mr.
Churkin warned that the U.N.'s intrusion into the internal affairs of a
country would set a dangerous precedent. “Then you will start telling
what king needs to resign and what Prime Minister needs to step down.
This is not the business of the Security Council.”
Observers
say the Russians are apprehensive that if validated, the principle of
U.N. interventionism in internal conflicts can be used to target them if
the domestic situation in Russia deteriorates for some reason.
Analysts
say at the heart of the sovereignty-versus-intervention debate in the
Security Council is the Responsibility to Protect (RtoP) norm of the
United Nations, which permits foreign involvement in the internal
affairs of a country when it can be established that “mass atrocities”
are possible. In Syria's case, Prime Minister of Qatar Sheik Hamad bin
Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani told the Security Council on Tuesday that the
Syrian government was a “killing machine (that) continues effectively
unabated”.
Backing the Russian position, China said
the Security Council was overstepping its mandated boundaries in the
case of Syria. “China...resolutely opposes pushing for forced regime
change in Syria, as it violates the United Nations Charter and the basic
norms guiding the practice of international relations,” Chinese
Ambassador to the United Nations Li Baodong said, China's state-run news
agency Xinhua reported.
Russia's insistence against
any resolution, seemingly for a humanitarian cause but which could
trigger a process of “regime change”, has been cemented by the Libyan
experience. Stung by the happenings in Libya, where a pro-West
government is now in place, Mr. Churkin insisted that as a matter of
principle, his country rejected sanctions or external meddling as a
means to solve internal conflicts. “We will not stand for any sanctions
resolutions or using the council's toolbox so as to fuel conflict or
possibly justify any foreign intervention in the future.”
Contrary
to Russian expectations, the text of the draft is open to future use of
sanctions or force against Syria. The Assad-regime, according to the
draft introduced by Morocco, could be subjected to “further measures”,
if it failed to comply to the main demands of the resolution —
delegation of “full authority” by the President to his deputy, leading
to the formation of an interim national unity government — within 15
days.
The Russians also questioned the Western
assumption that President Assad alone was responsible for the growing
violence in Syria. Speaking separately, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei
Lavrov said: “Yes, we condemn strongly the use of force by (Syrian)
government forces against civilians. But we condemn in the same strong
way the activities of the armed extremist groups who attack government
positions.”
On the contrary, U.S. Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton called Mr. Assad a “dictator”, and urged “the
international community to put aside our own differences and send a
clear message of support to the people of Syria” by backing the
European-Arab draft.
