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The U.N. Security Council faces a dramatic vote Thursday on referring the Syrian
crisis to the International Criminal Court for investigation of
possible war crimes, with dozens of countries signing on to embarrass
Russia which vowed to kill the ...
UN Vote on Syria Crisis Faces Russia Veto, Again
The U.N. Security Council faces a dramatic vote Thursday on referring
the Syrian crisis to the International Criminal Court for investigation
of possible war crimes, with dozens of countries signing on to embarrass
Russia which vowed to kill the measure that demands a path to justice.
Russia's U.N. ambassador, Vitaly Churkin, said Wednesday his country
will veto the French-drafted resolution, calling it a "publicity stunt"
that will hurt efforts to find a political solution to a crisis that
activists say has killed more than 160,000 and sent millions fleeing.
France's U.N. Ambassador Gerard Araud retorted that Churkin can't say
the resolution will undermine a political process "because there is no
political process." He challenged Russia to explain why it's really
casting a veto.
The draft resolution condemns the "widespread violation" of human rights
and international humanitarian law by Syrian authorities and
pro-government militias as well as abuses and violations by "non-state
armed groups" during the last three years. It would refer the conflict
to the world's permanent war crimes tribunal without targeting either
side.
The Security Council has been deeply divided over Syria, with Syrian
allies Russia and China at odds with the U.S., its Western allies and
other members who support the opposition.
This will be the fourth time Russia has used its veto power as a
permanent council member to deflect action against the government of
President Bashar Assad. China also supports Assad's government and
joined Russia in earlier vetoes, and diplomats said Beijing is likely to
do so again Thursday.
With attempts at peace talks at a standstill, leading the joint
U.N.-Arab league envoy who tried to broker them to resign, frustration
has soared as the international community struggles to find a solution
to the war, deliver humanitarian aid to almost 3.5 million Syrians in
need and end impunity for horrific crimes.
Some 50 U.N. countries have taken the unusual move of signing on as
co-sponsors to the latest Security Council resolution, saying they want
to send "a strong political signal ... that impunity for the most
serious crimes under international law is unacceptable."
Syria is not a party to the Rome Statute that established the
International Criminal Court, so the only way it can be referred to The
Hague, Netherlands-based tribunal is by the Security Council. The
council has previously referred conflicts in Darfur and Libya to the
court, but not with so many non-council members signing on in support.
Lobbying on both sides continued this week, with Syria's U.N. Ambassador
Bashar Ja'afari sending a letter Tuesday asking countries not to
support the resolution. A copy of the letter, obtained by The Associated
Press, calls the proposal "biased" and an effort to "sabotage any
chance of peaceful settlement of the Syrian crisis led by the Syrian
people themselves."
Ja'afari also accused France of supporting "terrorist groups" operating inside his country.
In a letter Tuesday to the Security Council, Najib Ghadbian, U.N.
representative of the opposition Syrian Coalition, blamed the Syrian
government for a range of crimes including the use of chemical weapons
and barrel bombs.
"There is every indication that many of the most heinous acts committed
by Syrian armed forces have received the approval, and indeed the
complicity, of the highest level of government, including Syria's head
of state," Ghadbian wrote.
The Security Council has managed twice to reach agreement on a Syria
resolution, once to get rid of its chemical weapons and earlier this
year to demand access for the delivery of humanitarian aid. The
resolution on aid has largely failed.
The new resolution takes note of reports by an independent commission
appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council to investigate rights
violations in Syria. In its latest report in September, the commission
said at least eight massacres had been perpetrated in Syria by Assad's
government and supporters, and one by rebels in the previous year and a
half.
A confidential list of suspected criminals is being produced by the
commission and kept under lock and key by U.N. High Commissioner for
Human Rights Navi Pillay.
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