Barack Obama and Recep Tayyip Erdogan

"Landep News"

Barack Obama and Recep Tayyip Erdogan

The United States and Turkey on Sunday announced that they plan to provide “nonlethal” assistance, such as communications equipment and medical supplies, directly to the opposition in Syria, and that they would urge other allies to do the same. The announcement was made by U.S. deputy national security adviser after a meeting between president Obama and Turkish PM Erdogan in Seoul, where they attend the summit on nuclear security.

The United States had already admitted that they had provided the Syrian opposition with humanitarian aid, and on Sunday, an administration official said, on condition of anonymity, that the U.S. has already begun to supply the Free Syrian Army with communications gear.

The agreement with Turkey will increase the aid even though both sides insist that no weaponry shall be delivered. They also agreed to set up a framework for further humanitarian and technical help on the occasion of the “Friends of Syria” meeting, expected to be held in Istanbul on Sunday.

The announcement was denounced by Russia, which called it a one-sided political support for the opposition in Syria. Russia is the most reliable supporter of the regime in Damascus and has used its veto twice in the United Nations Security Council, barring two resolutions that were intended to put pressure on the Syrian government.

Last week Russia agreed to support the six-point peace plan drafted by Kofi Annan, former U.N. secretary general. The draft does not condemn the Syrian regime, and does not demand it to stand down. Furthermore, it asks of both governmental and rebel forces to withdraw from their positions and to allow the diplomatic contacts to replace the military confrontation.

On Sunday, Kofi Annan met the Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, and agreed that no sides will be taken in the conflict by the international community. Russia does not accept any military intervention in Syria.

Annan’s spokesman said that the tone in Moscow was cooperative, and Dmitry Medvedev, outgoing president of the Russian Federation, added that Kofi Annan’s mission in Syria may be “Syria’s last chance to avoid a civil war.”

Russia’s foreign minister last week admitted that the president Bashar al-Assad made some mistakes about the protesters since the beginning, when the protest was peaceful and the people were brutally attacked by the security forces.

Lavrov also urged Syria to allow a two-hour ceasefire on daily basis, so that the humanitarian aid reach the people that need it. The demand is also part of the plan Kofi Annan has for the restive country.

In Istanbul, the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood said that it had outlined a vision of a post-Assad Syria, saying that they wanted a democratic, civil state, and promising that they would want to share power with other political forces. The guaranteeing of freedom of speech and religion, commitment to international treaties, and fighting the terrorism are principles that guide the Muslim Brotherhood into the post-Assad epoch.

Syrian Muslim Brotherhood manifested gratitude for the help the Syrian opposition received from the international community, but added they needed more help. It was not clear whether the support Obama and Erdogan agreed upon would reach the rebels directly.

The Syrian National Council, the most influential umbrella of the opposition in exile, expressed concern that the Muslim Brotherhood may seek the domination of the country.

Late on Sunday, Turkey announced it closed the embassy in Damascus and would recall the ambassador due to the volatility of the situation in the Syrian capital, but that the consulate in Aleppo would remain open.

The violence has not stopped in Syria in spite of the efforts made by the international community to end it. Opposition reports that the governmental forces have resumed pounding the city of Homs, after a week of quiet.

Human Rights Watch on Sunday said that civilians were being used by the governmental troops, and quoted the deposition of eye witnesses from Idlib that said that civilians, including children, were forced to march in front of troops and armored vehicles. There were testimonies that children were placed on tanks.

HRW also issued a report last week accusing the rebels of committing serious offences against human rights, including kidnapping, torture or executions. The organization said that the rebels were motivated mostly by the sectarian conflict in the country, where the majority of the population is Sunni Muslim, while the leadership is confessing the faith of a sect called Alawite.

8,000 people are said to have lost their lives since the unrest began more than a year ago, and the demand that a international criminal court for these crimes be established becomes more vivid among the Western nations.

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