US to give Syrian rebels aid, not arms

Moscow says Western help will only fuel more violence

The United States will send non-lethal aid directly to Syrian rebels for the first time, Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday, disappointing opponents of President Bashar al-Assad who are demanding Western weapons.

Kerry, speaking in Rome after a meeting of the mainly Western and Arab "Friends of Syria" group, said his country would more than double its aid to the Syrian civilian opposition, giving it an extra $60 million to help provide security.

The US would now "extend food and medical supplies to the opposition, including to the Syrian opposition's Supreme Military (Council)", Kerry said.

Russia said on Friday that decisions by Western nations to support the Syrian opposition will only fuel more violence and intensify the two-year conflict.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said that moves announced in Rome on Thursday "in spirit and in letter directly encourage extremists to seize power by force, despite the inevitable sufferings of ordinary Syrians that entails".

Russia also denied that it has a policy of propping up Assad but has not backed calls for him to stand down.

A statement, referring to a transition plan agreed by world powers in June, said: "In our opinion, the urgent task today is an immediate cessation of bloodshed and any violence and a shift to political dialogue which is foreseen by the Geneva Communique.

"We are convinced that this is exactly what will allow to realize the goals that are most important for Syrians - to secure a peaceful and democratic development of a single Syria in the interests of all its nationals, without any exception."

Britain and France, which Kerry visited this week as part of his first official trip as secretary of state, have signaled they want to supply rebels with defensive military equipment. The European Union still bars the provision of weapons and ammunition to anyone in Syria, but is expected to issue new guidance soon.

In the final statement, the "Friends of Syria" pledged more political and material support to the opposition Syrian National Coalition, a fractious group that has struggled to gain traction inside Syria, especially among disparate rebel forces.

Riad Seif, a coalition leader, said on the eve of the Rome talks that it would demand "qualitative military support", though another coalition official welcomed the shift in the US stance.

"We move forward with a great deal of cautious optimism," said Yasser Tabbara. "We heard today a different kind of discourse," he said, adding the opposition need military and political support.

In Moscow, a onetime close confidant of Assad who defected last year said on Friday that Russia and the US could act as co-guarantors of a ceasefire in Syria. Manaf Tlass, a former army commander, is in town for talks with senior Russian officials.

"We need Russia and the US, who would support the Syrian people and could put pressure on the regime. If that happens, it will be the way out and will be good for the Syrian people," Tlass said outside the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Tlass added that Assad's possible resignation was not up for discussion.

Throughout the two-year conflict, during which more than 70,000 have died, Moscow has rejected calls for Assad to quit, saying his government and rebels should pursue talks.

Nonetheless, Russia has signaled it may be prepared to take a more conciliatory stance in recent months. Most recently, Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested Moscow should listen to Western arguments for solving the crisis after meeting his French counterpart, Francois Hollande, on Thursday.

However, Western and Arab officials are scheduled to meet representatives of the Syrian opposition in Istanbul on Monday to discuss military and humanitarian support for rebels, a European diplomatic source said on Thursday, on the margins of the meeting in Rome.

AP-Reuters-AFP

(China Daily 03/02/2013 page7)