Brussels, 26/04/2012 (Agence Europe) - French Foreign Minister Alain Juppé has said that, if the Kofi Annan plan did not work, the use of force would have to be considered.
He said that “things are not going well” and that the peace plan has been “seriously compromised”. He called for the UN observers in Syria to be deployed “within the next fortnight and not in three months”. He stated that the next report by Kofi Annan, on 5 May, would be “the moment of truth”. If the report is negative, “we will have to move on to a further stage under United Nations Chapter VII to take another step towards ending this tragedy”, he said.
Chapter VII of the UN Charter relates to “action with respect to threats to the peace, breaches of the peace, and acts of aggression”. Among the measures, the Security Council “may take such action by air, sea, or land forces as may be necessary to maintain or restore international peace and security. Such action may include demonstrations, blockade, and other operations by air, sea, or land forces of Members of the United Nations”. This chapter also offers various sanctions.
Such a move would require a Security Council decision and it is very possible that Russia and China will exercise their power of veto.
Since the start of the crisis, the West has consistently opposed the use of force, fearing that this might destabilise the region. Speaking to journalists on Thursday, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso side-stepped the question, stating only that, for the moment, the EU's priority was to bring the violence to an end and to ensure access for humanitarian aid. He said the EU “unreservedly” backed the Annan six-point plan. At the Foreign Affairs Council on Monday 23, Luxembourg minister Jean Asselborn said that, “for the moment, and even in the future, the military option will cost the lives of tens of thousands of victims. A political solution has to be found.” (CG/transl.rt)