At first I was shocked when I heard the news. It seems that Russia is also shocked. But as I explored some news, I found that only 18 out of 22 member states voted yes. AL is not an organisation to punish its members basically. It needs unanimous votes in doing so.
So my first comment is that today's resolution is illegal. The resolution was not adopted but made public (thrown out of the legal process and advancing a purely political sphere). Perhaps anti-Syrian alliances are in a hurry and made a mistake. Russia and China won't accept such a childish breach of legal process.
My second comment is that this should be the political and legal norms in Qatar. We've just witnessed the Qatari way of doing things.
I believe that people in Damascus and Aleppo will calm down soon, and lead a normal life as if nothing had happened.
Link to the Arab League resolution:
Arab League Resolution, Nov. 12 (PDF)
Keep up the good work, khatyar yabani. Thank you.
ReplyDeletekhatyar yabani comments about the Arab League's resolution on Saturday "I was shocked when I heard the news." I've seen several newspaper reports that the Arab League's decision was "surprising". I was pretty shocked myself too. Today Monday I'm still mystified about how 18 sovereign and independent Arabic countries each judged that resolution to merit a positive vote. I haven't come across any of the 18 explaining themselves in public over the past couple of days about why they voted in favour of it (except Qatar).
Here's an example of why I'm suprised. The foreign minister of United Arab Emirates, Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahayan, said on 1 Nov 2011: "The Syrian situation requires Arabs to support the Syrian government and opposition to get out of this crisis. I do not think Arabs want to make it an international issue."
http://gulfnews.com/news/region/syria/gcc-and-russia-support-peaceful-syrian-solution-1.922346
Similarly the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, stated on 5 Jun 2011 his country's support for Syria to get out of the current crisis through implementing the reform programs declared by President Bashar al-Assad in a way that would ensure the security and stability of the region. He expressed the determination of the United Arab Emirates to support Syria in that regard. http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/06/05/350848.htm
On 25 Sep 2011 the Foreign Minister of Oman, Yusuf Bin Alawai, stressed his country's keenness on Syria's stability. He called on foreign countries to not interfere in Syria's internal affairs. He expressed confidence in the Syrian people's ability to solve their own problems. http://www.sana.sy/eng/22/2011/09/27/371540.htm
On 2 Nov 2011 Oman's Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf bin Alawi said that the Arab League's initiative could not have happened if it wasn't for President al-Assad's wisdom and ability to overcome sentiments in the face of a dangerous crisis, and he called on the opposition in Syria and abroad to engage in dialog about the reforms. http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/11/02/379589.htm
Why did UA Emirates and Oman vote to suspend Syria on Saturday? I don' know because they are not yet talking in public about why.
Hi, parviziyi!
ReplyDeleteMany thanks for your useful comment and lots of quotes which I didn't know.
I believe that none of the Arab states are supporting the destruction of Syria, except for Qatar, because the after-effect will be enormous.
If Syria burst out, a tiny kingdom of Jordan is the first country to collapse. The king should have sided with Syria along with Lebanon. The reward for her cooperation is just a minimum amount for the government finance and some small investments. It cannot cover all the damages the country suffered from the Syrian crisis.
Turkey seems to be the 2nd country that is reluctant to see chaotic Syria. Words from Turkey are harsh, but their actions were minimum so far. They know very well that the US and EU won't help Turkey at all when Syrian refugees rush to the Turkish border.
The reason why 18 Arab countries voted yes can only be explained by diplomatic pressures from outside (France-Israel-Qatar alliance). It is common that voting behavior at international conferences is distorted by diplomatic maneuvering, but the way it was done was highly unconcealed and forceful against the common interest in the region.
Therefore, I still have a hope. Because there are a lot of division lines on the side of the Arab League, whereas Syria is united, coherent and logical. They did against what they really have in mind. There is a room to penetrate here. Even if the AL decides sanctions against Syria, there will be a heated debate in ministries in each member state whether they should implement sanctions without the AL summit resolution, not the resolution on the foreign minister level.
Concerning the Arab and international contradiction between words and deeds, President al-Assad is reported to have told the Syrian expats delegation from Kuwait. Please read below.
President Assad to the delegation of the community in Kuwait: Qatar is spending billions of dollars to change the regime and we only opposition in Turkey is Davutoglu
http://www.alwatan.sy/dindex.php?idn=109097
http://backupurl.com/doeb9z <--- Click here for the original
09/25/2011
One of the Gulf States «dealing with us through two different but contradictory, the first shows through the positions and statements of officials in addition to media coverage distorted the Syrian position, and the second supporting us and our steps reform through constant contact, and I repeat to you the word permanent, by the leader of this country».
«Erdogan and the army and security in Turkey supportive to us, the only opposition we have in Turkey is the Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmed Davutoglu. He was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood and then turned to Salafi (extremist)».
The position of President Barack Obama «very positive» and expressed his satisfaction with the position of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, «Unlike the European position, which we consider it as a very hard line. The situaiton was opposite previously».