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World Powers, Meeting in New York, to Address Syrian War and ISIS
U.N. Security Council Approves Resolution on Syria Talks
(about 5 hours later)
UNITED NATIONS — Diplomats from more than a dozen countries met at the Palace Hotel in New York on Friday morning to discuss ending the Syrian civil war and focusing the world’s attention on the threat of the Islamic State.
UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations Security Council unanimously approved on Friday a resolution calling for a cease-fire and political talks to help end the civil war in Syria.
But it remained unclear whether the major powers could put aside their rivalries and fulfill a key goal — a United Nations Security Council resolution endorsing a plan for resolving the conflict.
The measure, adopted 15-0, is the first time that Russia and the United States, who have been at loggerheads over the future of Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, agreed on a road map for a political process.
At issue is whether the world powers that all have large stakes in the war can end the fighting, and in that way help stem the refugee crisis in Europe and the threat posed by the Islamic State.
The resolution makes no mention of whether or not Mr. Assad would be able to run for office in new elections, which it says must be held in the next 18 months.
The last two rounds of talks, held in Vienna in October and November, produced a diplomatic road map for Syria: a cease-fire by January; followed by talks between the Syrian government and opposition parties, mediated by the United Nations; and elections in 18 months.
There are still gaps to be reconciled between the American and Russian positions, but the agreement has enabled the Security Council to give its imprimatur to a possible political solution for the first time since the civil war started nearly five years ago.
This is the third meeting of the so-called International Syria Support Group, which is led by the top envoys of the United States and Russia, and includes the regional rivals Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey — which have vastly different agendas in Syria, as well as the Arab League and the European Union.
One possible obstacle to implementing a deal will be determining which of the disparate rebel groups would participate in the talks scheduled to begin next month, and whether they would agree to come to the table at all without a guarantee of Mr. Assad’s exit.
American officials said that before the full group began its discussions on Friday, Secretary of State John Kerry had conferred with his Russian counterpart, Sergey V. Lavrov, and that they had then met with envoys of the other three permanent members of the Security Council — Britain, China and France.
The resolution also leaves open the question whether other rebel groups can be designated as terrorist organizations and would fall outside the cease-fire agreement. The resolution embraces an effort led by Jordan to develop “a common understanding” for determining which groups are terrorist and which can participate in political talks with the Syrian government, allowing the fight against the Islamic State militants and the Qaeda-affiliated Al Nusra Front to continue.
The talks are meant to produce a resolution by the end of the day, giving the council’s blessing to the international support group and to the road map for peace. Diplomats say the work has been held up by crucial differences between Russia and the United States.
The resolution endorses a process begun by Secretary of State John Kerry to bring together the Russians, Iranians, Saudis and other major regional players with European governments to develop a diplomatic road map for resolving the Syrian conflict.
There were at least three unresolved issues when the talks began: which groups in Syria should be defined as terrorists, whether the Council would recognize the bloc of Syrian opposition groups that came together in Saudi Arabia last week, and whether President Bashar al-Assad should be allowed to run for another term in office.
Diplomats from more than a dozen countries met at the Palace Hotel in New York on Friday to discuss a possible resolution.
Western diplomats at the United Nations said they were not certain a consensus could be reached. “There are still differences of opinion about Assad and his specific future,” John Kirby, a State Department spokesman, told reporters in Washington on Thursday.
At issue was whether the countries that all have stakes in the outcome of the war can end the fighting, and by doing so, help stem the refugee crisis in Europe and the threat posed by the Islamic State.
Mr. Kirby referred to the agreement struck at the last meeting of the support group, which left Mr. Assad’s future unresolved. It called for “a unified, pluralistic, nonsectarian, whole Syria,” he said.
The last two rounds of talks, held in Vienna in October and November, produced a diplomatic road map for Syria: a cease-fire by January; talks between the Syrian government and opposition parties, mediated by the United Nations; and elections in 18 months.
The British ambassador to the United Nations, Matthew Rycroft, said outside the hotel gates Friday morning that the prospects of completing a draft resolution were “hopeful but not guaranteed.” He confirmed that the question of whether Mr. Assad would have to step down would not be addressed in the resolution.
The draft of the resolution agreed Friday by the so-called International Syria Support Group appears to include these three steps. The group is led by the envoys of the United States and Russia, and includes the regional rivals Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey — which have vastly different agendas in Syria. The Arab League and the European Union also participated.
Mr. Kerry met with the Saudi foreign minister, Adel al-Jubeir, on Thursday evening, and he is scheduled to meet with the Iranian foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, later on Friday. The seating plan for the group talks Friday morning had Mr. Jubeir and Mr. Zarif directly facing each other across the U-shaped negotiating table.
American officials said that before the full group began its discussions on Friday, Mr. Kerry had conferred with his Russian counterpart, Sergey V. Lavrov, and that they had then met with envoys of the other three permanent members of the Security Council — Britain, China and France.
One of the trickiest parts of the road map for diplomacy will be composing a list of groups in Syria that are considered terrorist organizations and would be excluded from the peace process. Jordan has been assigned that task.
John Kirby, a State Department spokesman, told reporters in Washington on Thursday that the agreement struck at the last meeting of the support group left Mr. Assad’s future unresolved. It called for “a unified, pluralistic, nonsectarian, whole Syria,” he said.
A related question is who will represent the Syrian opposition in the peace talks. Russia, in particular, is reluctant to endorse a role for Saudi Arabia in assembling that bloc, western diplomats said.
One of the trickiest parts of the road map for diplomacy was expected to be composing the list of groups in Syria that are considered terrorist organizations and would be excluded from the peace process.
The meeting on Friday follows a rare show of unity among the world powers Thursday afternoon, when the Security Council unanimously adopted a legally binding resolution intended to prevent the Islamic State, Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups from raising money.
The agreement on Friday comes after a rare show of unity among the world powers Thursday afternoon, when the Security Council unanimously adopted a legally binding resolution intended to prevent the Islamic State, Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups from raising money.
Jacob J. Lew, the United States Treasury secretary, said the measure was “designed to starve them of the resources they need to operate.”
One of the most incongruous parts of the resolution was that the government of Syria was one of its co-sponsors.
One of the most incongruous parts of the resolution was that the government of Syria was one of its co-sponsors.
The Syrian ambassador to the United Nations, Bashar al-Jaafari, told reporters on Thursday that he would participate in the Council meeting on Friday.
The diplomatic advance comes alongside intensified violence in Syria, with the United States, its European partners, and Russia all conducting airstrikes in the country.
