peace plan Archives

A Russian document circulating at the United Nations has proposed a constitutional reform process in Syria, lasting 18 months, to be followed by presidential elections.

The document does not say whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should remain in power during that time, according to the BBC.
It says certain Syrian opposition groups should take part in key talks on the crisis in Vienna on Saturday.

The Syrian army meanwhile is reported to have broken a siege in the north.

Army units had made contact with troops defending Kuwairis airbase, east of Aleppo, and eliminated large numbers of Islamic State (IS) militants, the Sana news agency said.

The facility had been under attack by IS jihadists for nearly two years.

A Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman said that the priority ahead of next Saturday’s meeting should be to establish which Syrian opposition groups are to be regarded as partners in the process, and which are “terrorist” and unacceptable.

The eight-point proposal drawn up by Russia is reported not to rule out President Bashar al-Assad’s participation in the elections – something his enemies say is impossible if there is to be peace.

“[The] popularly elected president of Syria will have the functions of commander-in-chief of the armed forces, control of special services and foreign policy,” the document is quoted by Reuters as saying.

It says that the reform process should not be chaired by President Assad, but by a candidate agreed upon by all sides.

It also calls for UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura to launch a political process between the Syrian government and “a united delegation of opposition groups” on the basis of the June 2012 agreement between major powers in Geneva, which calls for the formation of a transitional government for Syria.

A key Armenian leadership of Nagorno-Karabakh member has publicly spoken out against the formula of Armenian-Azerbaijani peace is advanced by the United States, Russia and France for almost a decade.

Ara Harutyunyan, Prime Minister of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh proclaimed (NKR), said that the basic principles of the resolution of the Karabakh conflict, also known as the Madrid principles are unacceptable because they call for significant Armenian territorial concessions vis-à-vis Azerbaijan.

The draft framework agreement for peace was formally put forward to the conflicting parties in Madrid in 2006. U.S. diplomats, Russian and French co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk changed repeatedly document since then. Its key elements, repeatedly expressed by the three mediating powers, would be principles remained unchanged.

Basic principles considering the Armenian withdrawal from almost all of the seven Azerbaijani districts around Karabakh that are fully or partially controlled by Karabakh Armenian forces. It would be followed by a referendum in which the majority Armenian population of Karabakh should determine the status of internationally recognized territory.

The administrations of President Serzh Sargsyan and his predecessor Robert Kocharian stated repeatedly that this formula is widely acceptable for Armenia. The reaction of the Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh was much warmer. Yet the leaders of the NKR have so far refrained from publicly reject the proposed principles.

“The Madrid principles are certainly unacceptable for us,” Harutyunyan said at a session of questions and answers on Facebook. He said that “if such a document is finally presented to the public and the government of Artsakh (Karabagh), I do not think he can receive a positive response.”

Harutiunian argued that “liberated territories” which would be populated by Azeris are vital to the security of Karabakh and its economic development. The Government of Karabakh will continue to invest in local infrastructure, has he said.

Tuesday, July 29, 2014,

Syria conflict: Russia ‘peace plan’ revealed ahead of key summit

The peace plan mediators “unacceptable” for the Armenians of Karabakh