Let's call a spade a spade: Kofi Annan’s peace plan has had its day, and it's time he said as much.
Mr Assad has recaptured major cities and weakened the rebel coalition with a ruthless offensive Photo: Reuters
By Telegraph View
7:41PM BST 08 Jun 2012
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As Syria bleeds, diplomacy risks becoming an artful way of concealing harsh reality. The wearying circumlocutions of Kofi Annan, the former United Nations secretary general and author of the six-point peace plan, might serve as a prime illustration of this danger. Rather than admit the demonstrable failure of his proposal in the aftermath of Syria’s latest massacre, this pillar of global respectability prefers to tie himself in exquisitely dignified knots. “I’m not sure whether it is the plan that is dead,” intoned Mr Annan, “or it is implementation that is lacking.”
You have to have attended countless international conferences to produce obfuscation like that. Now is the moment to call a spade a spade: Mr Annan’s plan has had its day. At no stage did this sensible, well-intentioned blueprint alter the behaviour of President Bashar al-Assad – or the Syrian opposition. On the contrary, despite agreeing to respect a ceasefire from April 10 onwards (how hollow that sounds today), and formally accepting the Annan proposals more than two months ago, this pitiless tyrant has continued to torment his people. Mr Assad has recaptured major cities and weakened the rebel coalition with a ruthless offensive. As such, he is probably safer today than he was at the turn of the year.
Who now can doubt that his acceptance of the Annan plan was merely a cynical device to ward off international pressure? Russia and China, for their part, endorsed the proposal simply to cover their embarrassment over being the chief protectors of an odious regime. The Western powers, and Syria’s exasperated neighbours, signed up because they did not want to be seen to obstruct a chance for peace. For a while, everyone had an interest in backing Mr Annan and pretending that his ideas had traction.
Sadly, both Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, and William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, have yet to drop the act. Their verbal contortions on Thursday came close to the Annan league. America and Britain at least have the excuse that calling off the Annan effort is not within their gift: only the man himself can do that.
So Mr Annan, whose sincerity is beyond question, has the power to perform one great service for the Syrian people. He should now announce that his best attempts have failed and that the Security Council and the Arab League, whom he jointly serves as envoy, must proceed to review their entire approach towards Syria. That would open the way for a new effort, with a greater chance of success.
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Some hope that Russia and China might yet remove their protective arms from Mr Assad’s shoulders. If Russia, Syria’s principal arms dealer, were to cut off the supply of weapons, the bloodstained security forces who are all that stand between Mr Assad and his foes would rapidly wither on the vine. But this seems a vain hope. Vladimir Putin, newly restored to eminence as Russian president, has made abundantly clear that he will not budge.
That leaves one possible avenue. Every Arab country, with the possible exception of Iraq and Lebanon, wants to see the back of Mr Assad. Turkey, his most powerful neighbour, fervently desires his overthrow. These nations should be given all the encouragement and assistance they need to build Mr Assad’s opponents into a force powerful enough either to cause his downfall, or compel his allies to cast him overboard. For Qatar and Saudi Arabia – although not the West – that probably means arming and funding the rebels. For Turkey, the options include carving out a buffer zone along the Syrian border and becoming a hub for Mr Assad’s armed and civilian opponents.
Within Syria itself, millions clearly yearn to break the chains of tyranny. But others – particularly from the Alawite and Christian minorities – are understandably fearful of what that might entail. After 42 years of Alawite rule, any transfer of power to the Sunni majority would be inherently dangerous. As such, the opposition must be given a platform to reassure these minorities of their place in a post-Assad Syria. Once it becomes clear that the dictator’s foes are growing stronger, while all he offers is perpetual bloodshed, the scales might tip against him. But the harsh realities of today must first be faced.
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