Qatar, S Arabia, Turkey, West undercut Annan plan

The Syrian ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar al-Jafari, has called on Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Western nations not to undermine the peace plan proposed by the UN-Arab League envoy to Syria Kofi Annan by funding and supporting opposition groups who are strongly behind the terrorists.

On Thursday, after Annan briefed the UN General Assembly, Jafari criticized Persian Gulf Arab states for their “petrodollar” support for Syrian opposition groups and lashed out at Turkey for hosting the second so-called “Friends of Syria” meeting last weekend, AFP reported.

“We need to get commitments from the Qataris, from the Saudis, from the Turks, from the French, from the USA, that Annan should be given a chance in order to succeed,” Jafari said.

“We need a crystal-cut commitment and a guarantee by Mr Annan himself – after he consults with Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the others – that once the government will observe and will respect the end of violence, the other parties will do the same and will not fill the vacuum,” he added.

On Sunday, the US and several US-backed Persian Gulf Arab countries led by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, pledged 100 million dollars to provide salaries and communications equipment for Syrian rebels fighting against the Syrian government.

Annan told the UN General Assembly on Thursday that the Syrian government told him it had started a “partial withdrawal” from cities of Idlib, Zabadani and Dara’a.

On March 27, Damascus accepted a six-point plan by Kofi Annan to end the unrest in Syria. On Monday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad agreed to an April 10 deadline to implement the peace plan, which calls for a ceasefire, access for humanitarian aid agencies as well as political dialog between Damascus and the opposition.