UN's Syria envoy presents new peace proposal

NEW YORK

The UN's special envoy for Syria submitted a new proposal to the Security Council on Wednesday for the next steps to ending the war.

Staffan de Mistura said he would invite Syrian parties to "parallel, or simultaneous, thematic discussions through intra-Syrian working groups addressing the key aspects of the Geneva Communique", a document issued in 2012 that calls for an immediate end to fighting and the formation of a transitional government.

He proposed the formation of four subject-specific working groups, addressing "safety and protection for all", "political and constitutional issues", "military and security issues" and "public institutions, reconstruction and development".

The Italian diplomat said the working groups will begin the process “towards a Syrian owned framework document on the implementation of the Geneva Communique", adding that the document is "still ... internationally only recognized framework for a settlement, even if still ambiguous in some parts".

The effort should be led by a steering committee composed of Syrians from these thematic groups and possibly elsewhere, and the framework document will also provide for a "transitional governing body, procedures for a national dialogue, the constitution drafting process and transitional justice issues", according to de Mistura.

The new proposal follows a series of meetings de Mistura held in Geneva with the parties involved in Syria's civil war, now in its fifth year.

The conflict has killed more than 250,000 people and displaced nearly half of the population, according to the UN.

"Given especially the recent gains by Daesh and al-Nusra front, talk about some de facto fragmentation, radicalization and sectarianism, there is thus a growing reference to the need for a managed, phased, gradual, controlled transition to avoid a repeat of what no-one in this council would like to see: the problems we had in Libya and in Iraq", de Mistura said during his briefing to the Council.

"The fear of black flags over Damascus is driving many to consider reassessing their own early positions", he said, referring to the banner representing Daesh.

Counter-terrorism appears to be a priority of many regional and international actors, but some also believe that there is "need for a credible new government with whom they can partner in that effort", he said.

"While common ground exists, the question over devolution of executive authority to a transitional body ... remains the most polarized element of the communique", he said.

The communique proposed a transitional governing body "with full executive powers" that includes members of the opposition and the government, with the participation of all groups and segments of the society in a national dialogue process.

It also envisages free and fair multi-party elections for the new institutions that have been established.

"What I'm today proposing is actually a deepening, a getting much more deeper of those issues in the Geneva Communique which are not so controversial, and analyzing those which can be controversial", de Mistura said.

He said some political and opposition groups categorically reject power sharing with the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, while the regime continues to reject the concept of power sharing as unconstitutional.

"Whatever the solution, it should ensure the meaningfulness, irreversibility of any transition in a widely acceptable process without causing an abrupt jolt, shock trauma, catastrophe in the system", he said. "In Syria, we cannot afford that".

The Italian diplomat also said it was too soon for another peace conference in Geneva, referring to two previous peace in the Swiss  city that ended in failure.

Speaking at the same session, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon asked the Council to "endorse Mr. de Mistura’s recommendations and work with the Syrian parties to convince them to participate constructively in this proposed process."

He said the aim of the process would be to reach an intra-Syrian agreement on the elements of the Geneva Communique, including on the issue of the transitional government, as well as to effectively fight terrorism.

"I stand ready to convene a high-level international conference to endorse any recommendations or agreement that this Syrian-led political process may reach", he said.

Ban described the Syrian conflict as "a shameful symbol of the international community’s divisions and failure" and urged the international community to act without hesitance.

"The status quo in Syria is unacceptable", he said. "Some argue that we must wait to end this nightmare until there is a more propitious alignment of regional and international circumstances. This would be both immoral and irresponsible," he said.