Syrian opposition coalition likely to join Geneva-2

Kerry: “We’re not going to be fooled by Assad”

The Syrian National Coalition's logo

“Chances are the Syrian National Coalition will decide to join the Geneva-2 peace talks,” proclaims a front-page headline in the authoritative Saudi daily Asharq Alawsat this morning.

Pan-Arab al-Hayat, another Saudi-owned daily, talks of an American-Russian understanding that the priority at Geneva-2 would be “to set up a transitional governing body that would exercise full executive powers and supervise the armed forces and security services.”

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry hinted at this yesterday at his Joint Press Availability at the State Department’s Ben Franklin Room with Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird and Mexican Foreign Secretary Jose Antonio Meade.

SPOKESPERSON JEN PSAKI: The first question will be from Michael Gordon of The New York Times.

QUESTION: A question for Secretary Kerry. Sir, after you became Secretary of State, you made the point repeatedly that it was important to change Bashar al-Assad’s calculation in order to achieve a political solution at Geneva II. Now almost a year later, it’s clear that the Assad regime believes its position is stronger than ever. In his letter to the United Nations, the Syria foreign minister, who will be leading the delegation to Geneva-2, suggests that the purpose of going to Geneva is to fight terrorism, not discuss a political transition. In fact, he says some points in the invitation the Syrian Government received from the UN are “in conflict with the legal and political position of the state of Syria.”

Sir, my question is: How can you expect to make progress toward a political transition at Geneva-2 if the Assad government does not even accept the purpose of the conference, which is what its own letter suggests. Have you been in contact with the Syrian Government over the past 24 hours to obtain an assurance that it accepts the purpose of the meeting? And doesn’t the Syrian foreign minister’s letter mean that more pressure needs to be brought to bear on the Assad government in order to make political headway? Thank you.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much, Michael. Yesterday I addressed directly the revisionism of the Syrian regime in its effort to try to divert the purpose, which will not be successful. More than 30 nations are going to assemble, all of whom, thus far, and if there are more, will be and must be committed to the Geneva-1 communiqué. Now, you were with me in Paris the other day when Foreign Minister Lavrov stood up and reiterated that the purpose of this conference is the implementation of the Geneva-1 communiqué.

Nobody would have believed that Assad would have given up his chemical weapons. But he did. And the reason he did is that his patrons came to understand that he had to. And I believe, as we begin to get to Geneva, and begin to get into this process, that it will become clear that there is no political solution whatsoever if Assad is not discussing a transition and if he thinks he’s going to be part of that future. It’s not going to happen. The people who are the opponents of this regime will never, ever stop. There will be a low-grade insurgency at least, and worse, potentially even a civil war if it continues, because they will not stop.

Now we also are not out of options with respect to what we may be able to do to increase the pressure and further change the calculation. And I think we’ve made that clear to the Russian foreign minister and others, and nor are other players short of an ability to be able to have an impact here.

So I think they can bluster, they can protest, they can put out distortions. The bottom line is: We are going to Geneva to implement Geneva-1. And if Assad doesn’t do that, he will invite greater response in various ways from various people over a period of time. So I’m not particularly surprised that he is trying to divert this. He’s been doing this for months, trying to make himself the protector of Syria against extremists, when he himself has even been funding some of those extremists – even purposely ceding some territory to them in order to make them more of a problem so he can make the argument that he is somehow the protector against them. Nobody is going to be fooled. We’re not going to be fooled by this process.

So Foreign Minister Lavrov has stated: They are supporting the Geneva-1 communiqué and the government has to come and negotiate around the communiqué. And since Russia is one of the primary benefactors of the Assad regime, we believe the Russians have a high stake in helping to make certain that Assad understands exactly what the parameters of this negotiation are.

Assad tables Aleppo ceasefire and prisoner swap

Moallem and Lavrov after their joint press conference in Moscow today (Reuters)

Within 24 hours of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry slamming Syrian government efforts to change the focus of next week’s Geneva-2 peace talks, Damascus today handed over a plan for an Aleppo ceasefire and readied for a possible prisoner exchange with the opposition.

At the news conference held after his meeting today with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the Russian Foreign Ministry's Mansion in Moscow, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said Damascus is ready to negotiate a ceasefire agreement with opposition forces in the flashpoint city of Aleppo.

A list of rebel prisoners has also been drawn up in preparation for a proposed exchange of prisoners.



“Taking into account the role of the Russian Federation in halting the bloodshed in Syria and our relationship of trust, today I have given Minister Lavrov a ceasefire plan for the city of Aleppo,” Russia Today (RT) quoted Muallem as saying.

He asked Lavrov to coordinate with his contacts in the Syrian opposition in order to ensure the execution of the new plan, adding that if it is successful it could be implemented in other areas of the war-torn country.

“I really hope all sides will keep to the terms of the agreement. If this happens, then we can implement this plan in other cities.”

Addressing the issue of the humanitarian crisis in Syria, Muallem said the Syrian government is already working with the UN to deliver aid to “a number of regions.” However, the success of the humanitarian program depends on rebel fighters keeping to their pledge not to open fire on humanitarian convoys, he said.

Refuting claims the Syrian Army is bombing its own citizens, Muallem said such allegations “do not reflect the reality of the current situation.” He laid the blame at the feet of terrorist organizations that are being supported by international players.

“According to the constitution, the Syrian government is obligated to protect its citizens and public institutions in Syria. Terrorists and terror groups are responsible for these destructive acts,” said Muallem, adding: “These groups are growing in number because of outside support from known states.”

Lavrov echoed this opinion, describing as “irresponsible” accusations that Damascus is carrying out strikes on its own citizens. 
“In Syria, civilians are suffering on both sides, but it is totally irresponsible to accuse the government of purposely targeting civilians,” said Lavrov. “To make such accusations, serious proof is required.”

Both foreign ministers said opposition representation is absolutely essential for the success of the Geneva-2 talks, which are set to kick off next Monday. They believe the conference will pave the way for the creation of a transitional government to bring an end to the three-year conflict.

The Syrian National Coalition – the main political opposition umbrella organization – is meeting in Istanbul later today to decide whether it will attend the Geneva talks.

KERRY

In remarks to the press at the State Department’s Briefing Room yesterday, Thursday, Kerry said in part:

I know that many of you have been asking about some of the recent revisionism as to why the international community will be gathering in Montreux next week, so let me make it clear here today.

From the very moment that we announced the goal of holding the Geneva conference on Syria, we all agreed that the purpose was specifically and solely to implement the 2012 Geneva-1 communiqué. That purpose, that sole purpose, could not have been more clear at the time this was announced and it could not be more clear today. It has been reiterated in international statement after international statement that the parties have signed up to, and venue after venue, in resolution after resolution, including most recently in Paris last weekend when both the London 11 and the Russian Federation reaffirmed their commitment to that objective, the implementation of Geneva-1.

So for anyone seeking to rewrite this history or to muddy the waters, let me state one more time what Geneva-2 is about: It is about establishing a process essential to the formation of a transition government body – governing body with full executive powers established by mutual consent. That process – it is the only way to bring about an end to the civil war that has triggered one of the planet’s most severe humanitarian disasters and which has created the seeding grounds for extremism.

The Syrian people need to be able to determine the future of their country. Their voice must be heard. And any names put forward for leadership of Syria’s transition must, according to the terms of Geneva-1 and every one of the reiterations of that being the heart and soul of Geneva-2, those names must be agreed to by both the opposition and the regime. That is the very definition of mutual consent.

This means that any figure that is deemed unacceptable by either side, whether President Assad or a member of the opposition, cannot be a part of the future. The United Nations, the United States, Russia, and all the countries attending know what this conference is about. After all, that was the basis of the UN invitation sent individually to each country, a restatement of the purpose of implementing Geneva-1. And attendance by both sides and the parties can come only with their acceptance of the goals of the conference.

We too are deeply concerned about the rise of extremism. The world needs no reminder that Syria has become the magnet for jihadists and extremists. It is the strongest magnet for terror of any place today. So it defies logic to imagine that those whose brutality created this magnet, how they could ever lead Syria away from extremism and towards a better future is beyond any kind of logic or common sense.

And so on the eve of the Syrian Opposition Coalition general assembly meeting tomorrow (today, Friday) to decide whether to participate in Geneva in the peace conference, the United States, for these reasons, urges a positive vote. We do so knowing that the Geneva peace conference is not the end but rather the beginning, the launch of a process, a process that is the best opportunity for the opposition to achieve the goals of the Syrian people and the revolution, and a political solution to this terrible conflict that has taken many, many, many, too many lives.

We will continue to push in the meantime for vital access for humanitarian assistance. I talked yesterday with Russian Federation Foreign Minister Lavrov in an effort to push still harder for access to some areas where the regime played games with the convoys, taking them around a circuitous route instead of directly in the way that the opposition had arranged for and was willing to protect them in. It is important that there be no games played with this process.

We will also continue to fight for ceasefires where we could achieve them, and we will continue to fight for the exchange or release of captive journalists and aid workers and others in order to try to improve the climate for negotiations.

Now, obviously, none of this will be easy. Ending a war and stopping a slaughter never is easy. We believe, though, this is the only road that can lead to the place where the civilized world has joined together in an effort to lead the parties to a better outcome. And to the Syrian people, let me reiterate: The United States and the international community will continue to provide help and support, as we did yesterday in Kuwait, where we pledged $380 million of additional assistance in order to try to relieve the pain and suffering of the refugees.

We will continue to stand with the people of Syria writ large, all the people, in an effort to provide them with the dignity and the new Syria, which they are fighting for. Thank you.

Kerry gets potatoes of peace to Syria talks

Aleppo ceasefire, prisoner swaps and Ghouta aid mulled

Kerry presenting Lavrov with the two Idaho potatoes

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry presented Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with two potatoes from Idaho before the beginning of their talks at the U.S. ambassador's residence in Paris.

Kerry said he and Lavrov had spoken to one another several weeks ago and planned to discuss Syria. Then the Secretary of State produced two potatoes from a big cardboard box and gave them to the Russian minister.

The Russian delegation responded later with an ushanka hat, an iconic relic of the Soviet era, complete with a red star, but colored cartoonish pink.

Kerry and Lavrov discussed the possibility of ceasefires in parts of Syria, Kerry said after the talks in Paris.

Lavrov said the two also discussed a possible willingness by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to open aid corridors.

"We talked today about the possibility of trying to encourage a ceasefire. Maybe a localized ceasefire in Aleppo," Kerry told the news conference after the talks with Lavrov, which were joined by UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi a little later.

Lavrov said Damascus had indicated it might provide access for humanitarian aid to besieged areas. According to RT, he specifically cited the Damascus suburb of East Ghouta, where fighting traps 160,000 people.

"We await similar steps by the opposition," Lavrov said.

The United States is pushing for a series of confidence-building measures, including prisoner exchanges, in the Syria war in advance of Geneva-2, a planned peace conference in Switzerland on January 22.

Prisoner exchanges may be a simpler goal to achieve. Armed opposition forces are preparing lists of Syrian army soldiers and officials in their captivity, Kerry said. A similar preparation is underway in Damascus.

Achieving a total ceasefire would probably be unrealistic under the circumstances, but both the U.S. and Russia are suggesting a localized ceasefire such as in Aleppo, which would serve as a test for the readiness of both sides to curb violence.

Syria’s second largest city Aleppo has been a scene of intensive fighting in the past few weeks.

A third important step would be providing humanitarian access to Syrian regions most affected by the violence, particularly the Damascus suburbs of Ghouta. Lavrov is negotiating such a move with Damascus, Kerry said.

Another important issue discussed by the three negotiators deals with Iran’s participation in the conference. According to Brahimi, an invitation to the Swiss town of Montreux, where the gathering is to take place, has been sent to Tehran.

“Iran’s participation or otherwise is not a matter of ideology; it is a matter of common sense,” the envoy said.

Kerry said the U.S. supports Iran’s participation in the conference, but insists that Tehran endorses the peace roadmap agreed at the June 2012 Syria peace conference in Geneva.

“We hope that in the end the UN Secretary General will invite everyone, who has an impact on the real development of the situation,” Lavrov said.

Syrian National Council shoots down Geneva-2

Top: "Solution in The Hague, not Geneva." Above: Russia, U.S., Iran and Syrian regime rule the roost in Geneva

The Syrian National Council (SNC), the main component of Syria’s opposition umbrella organization known as the Syrian National Coalition, reaffirmed yesterday it will not attend the planned Geneva-2 peace conference.

The statement reiterates an earlier announcement by SNC president George Sabra in October that the group had taken a “firm decision” not to attend the talks.

Sabra had also said the SNC would withdraw from the National Coalition if it decided to attend.

The group has long insisted it refuses to negotiate until President Bashar Al-Assad’s regime exits power.

Sabra’s SNC said in a statement posted in Arabic on its Facebook page:

The SNC’s General Secretariat met in the city of Istanbul throughout January 3 and 4, 2014, to discuss issues of concern to the Syrian Revolution as well as the Syria situation in general.

On its agenda was a set of important matters awaiting fitting decisions.

The General Secretariat heard reports about the internal situation on the ground and its evolution in light of the surrounding circumstances.

The international and regional situation and its fallouts on the Revolution’s course were appraised as well.

In addition, the General Secretariat took stock of the report by the SNC’s Executive Office on its international activities and contacts during the previous phase and the ensuing assessments of the contacts.

In light of the said givens, and regarding attendance of the Geneva-2 conference, the General Secretariat discussed the matter from all angles.

And after weighing up the political, military and humanitarian relief situation and hearing special and detailed reports about the regional and international political visits and gatherings, it emerged that all the efforts exerted by the Opposition (i.e. both the Syrian National Council and the Syrian National Coalition) to overcome the hurdles blocking convocation of the conference failed to yield positive results because the regime and its allies did not fully commit to the spirit and provisions of Geneva-1 and the regime failed to implement any of them.

On the contrary, they added a new task to Geneva-2, which they dubbed “Fighting Terrorism” -- with the regime persisting in its use of such war tactics as partial sieges, starvation, random killings by barrel-bomb attacks and the occupation of Syrian lands by sectarian militias summoned by the regime from beyond the border without a reaction from Arab or international societies.

In the end, the SNC’s General Secretariat did not find any realistic development or clear and specific agenda ensuring the conference’s success in achieving the Syrian Revolution’s objectives, which would have it revise its earlier decision.

Hence, it decided to reiterate and reaffirm its previous decision to stay away from the Geneva-2 conference under the present conditions…

Hollande, Abdullah set to meet in Rawdat Khoraym

Rawdat Khoraym, a wild life park and oasis 100 kms northeast of Riyadh

French President Francois Hollande flies into Riyadh this afternoon on his second official visit to Saudi Arabia before flying by helicopter to Rawdat Khoraym for talks with King Abdullah.

Rawdat Khoraym, or Khoraym Gardens, is a wild life park and oasis that blooms in the middle of the desert, chiefly in springtime.

Situated some 100 kilometers northeast of Riyadh, Rawdat Khoraym is the King’s favorite retreat.

Hollande told Lebanese journalist Ms Randa Takieddine in an exclusive interview for the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat he will focus in his talks with the monarch on the Iran file and the political solution in Syria.

“Bilateral cooperation between our two countries is consolidating in all fields. France and the Kingdom are partners in working for peace, security and stability in the Middle East.”

Hollande and Abdullah in Riyadh last Novemeber

The French president said he would take up with King Abdullah the world powers’ talks with Iran on its nuclear ambitions and ways of reaching a political solution to the Syria crisis, the need to uphold Lebanon’s stability as well as France’s partnership with the Kingdom in the defense domain.

He reiterated there could be no political solution to the Syria crisis with Bashar al-Assad remaining in power, saying: “Assad is not fighting Muslim extremists. He simply uses them to put pressure on the moderate opposition.”

France, Hollande stressed, continues to coordinate steps with moderate Syrian opposition forces to find a political outcome in Syria.

He hoped the international community would come together at the Geneva-2 Syria peace conference to kickoff a process for a genuine transfer of power in Syria that would preclude the escalation of violence there and in the region.

The French leader strongly condemned Saturday’s car-bomb assassination in Beirut of Lebanon’s former finance minister Mohamad Chatah, an economist who held a senior position at the IMF. Chatah “was a man of dialogue and peace,” he said

Hollande called for the cessation of violence that is threatening Lebanon, saying: “It is vital to respect the country’s constitutional deadlines, particularly the date set for presidential elections” in May.

President Michel Sleiman's mandate runs out on May 25 and there are fears a successor will be hard to find because of huge disagreements between Lebanon's pro- and anti-Syria blocs.

Turning Geneva-2 into the tomb of Geneva-1

RT photo of Lavrov meeting RT journalists at an RT studio

Writing today for pan-Arab daily al-Hayat, political analyst Abdelwahhab Badrakhan says, “The United Nations might for the first time be banking on two chemical scientists to manage the planned Geneva conference on Syria instead of relying on experts in politics and diplomacy.

“Why?

“Because the aim, according to leaks and to information being circulated, is to concoct a composite of magical, miraculous and unknown ingredients allowing each of the sides concerned to claim the composite help realize its objectives:

“One, Bashar al-Assad and his regime remain in office with the consent of the opposition and the international community in order to fight the terrorists whose existence he predicted before they emerged in Syrian opposition ranks.

“Two, the opposition would receive a form of words reducing Assad’s prerogatives in preparation for his exit and changing the regime’s character, making it more representative of society’s sectarian components.

“The chief chemical scientists are Sergei Lavrov and John Kerry.

“The former, Lavrov, is more outspoken. His laboratory does not cease blending acids with toxins, facts with assumptions and aspirations in order to come up with prescriptions that are insoluble: The priority is to fight terror and to unify the regime and opposition in the war against it.

“The other, Kerry, uses his ambassador, Robert Ford, to deliver consecutive electrical shocks to tame the opposition’s demands. The opposition does not only have to live with the idea of Assad staying put, but with the army and security services remaining under Alawite command, in to prevent the army disintegrating and to protect the sect.

“Fair enough.

“But where is Geneva-1 from all this? And how is Geneva-2 convened on its basis or the basis of the invite to it to be made by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in late December?”

LAVROV

In the buildup for Christmas Day, Lavrov gave RT (Russia Today), a global news channel broadcasting from Moscow and Washington studios to over 100 countries around the globe, his appraisal of “the arrangements on Syria and Iran” and “the prospects for the Geneva-2 talks.

In his words:

The agreements to destroy the Syrian chemical arsenal and to convene the Geneva-2 conference, as well as the first stage agreement on further steps to resolve the Iran nuclear issue, are the fruit of years-long efforts. At least when it comes to Syria, we're talking about three years of Russia's consistent efforts of defending international law. The same applies to the progress on Iran. For over three years we'd been seeking two things: first, to get all the parties to the talks to agree that eventually Iran should have a recognized right to develop its peaceful nuclear program and enrich uranium to make fuel for nuclear power plants, while making sure that this program has no military dimension and that it is subject to total control of the IAEA, and providing security to all the countries in the region, including Israel.

***

The decisions regarding Syria and Iran are far from being fully implemented. As for destroying Syria’s chemical stockpiles, everything is going according to plan, with minor deviations concerning the timeframe of the interim stages, though the reasons for that are objective rather than subjective. I am sure the deadline for the complete destruction of Syria’s chemical arsenal, June 30, will be met.

As for Geneva-2, we still have a long way to go. We don’t know for sure that this conference will be successful. And as regards the Iranian nuclear program, we’ve only reached an agreement concerning the first phase.

***

[Forced “democratization” results in instability]. This happened when Americans invaded Iraq; this happened recently, when NATO blatantly overstepped the UN Security Council mandate and bombed Libya; and this kind of external intervention is also happening in a number of other countries in the region. The Syrian conflict is another example of a situation where you have terrorists from all over the world, including Europe, U.S. and Russia, fight there to turn Syria, and in fact this whole region, into a caliphate. So, forced democratization by outside forces undermines stability and produces new threats. Greater stability, on the other hand, provides the best environment for democratic reforms.

So, when the conference on Syria opens (and I really hope that the conference will go ahead as planned on January 22; I hope the opposition does not come up with some unacceptable conditions contrary to the Russian-American initiative), I strongly believe this conference should focus on fighting terrorism as this is the main threat to Syria and other countries in the region today. Certainly, there will be other issues on the agenda, including pressing humanitarian issues, discussions on the political process, organizing the elections, provisional institutions for the transitional period, but all this should be based on a common understanding between the government and the opposition, just the way it was captured in the Geneva communiqué produced at the first Geneva conference.

So, I really hope that our Western partners and our partners in the region, which have more influence on the opposition than anybody else, will make sure, firstly, that the opposition is properly represented at this conference and, secondly, that the opposition attends the conference without any preconditions. The very point of the Russian-American initiative is that the people of Syria should agree on how to implement the principles captured in the Geneva communiqué of June 30, 2013, without any external intervention or any preconditions. But so far, unfortunately, we don’t know what the regime's opponents, who have recently formed the National Coalition, will do. We are alarmed by the fact that the National Coalition does not seem to have complete unity. We are also alarmed by the fact that the National Coalition keeps saying that this conference must result in a regime change, or even that a regime change is a prerequisite for having the conference. This is something we have never agreed to. We are also alarmed by the fact that the National Coalition does not seem to have complete control over all the groups fighting the regime on the ground. Another concern is that we see among the rebels an increasing number of jihadists who pursue extremist objectives. They want to set up a caliphate and impose sharia laws, and basically they are already terrorizing minorities.

They have formed what they call an Islamic Front, and some of our partners in the West are even flirting with it – even though we know from our confidential contacts with them that they know pretty well that the organizations which formed the Islamic Front are not much different from Jabhat al-Nusra, or the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. This alarms us.

***

The opposition says they will only take part in the conference if their various demands are met. Sometimes they insist on a regime change; sometimes they say they need guarantees that there will be a regime change immediately after the conference; sometimes they say they will only take part in the Geneva conference after the humanitarian crisis is taken care of. But in reality the humanitarian crisis gets worse mostly because of the militants, because of the groups that many countries have officially recognized as extremist and terrorist. So, we do need to address humanitarian issues, but instead of fighting symptoms we should fight the root cause of the crisis. And the root cause of the crisis is that the terrorist threat is extremely serious in Syria today, and the government and the opposition should come to an agreement on the key parameters regarding the future of their country, like I said earlier.

***

By the way, I should also mention that at the G8 summit in Lough Erne in June, all the leaders of the G8 countries urged both the Syrian government and the opposition in their communiqué to join their forces in fighting terrorists in order to defeat those terrorists and drive them out of Syria. This, I believe, is our top priority today. Once the situation stabilizes, once the rights of all minorities are secured, once the multi-ethnic and multi-faith nature of the Syrian state is secured, democratic institutions will follow. Stability is the number one priority today.

KHOURY

In his column for the independent Lebanese daily an-Nahar, political analyst Rajeh el-Khoury says if reports are true the Syrian National Coalition is divided on attending Geneva-2, it means some in the opposition are Lavrov apologists. They have no misgivings about ignoring Francois Hollande’s warning against the conference endorsing “a handover of power from Assad to Assad.”

Having gagged the Americans, the Russians eliminated the Syrian people and their dead from the political and moral equation and started to speak of Geneva-2 as a forum aimed solely at fighting terror.

In the Russians’ view, the terrorists are the Syrian civilians being decimated by Assad’s barrel bombs, Scud missiles and chemical weapons.

Geneva-2, in its Russian format, won’t thrash out a Syria solution. It is evident from his words, Lavrov wants Geneva-2 to be an international occasion to reproduce Assad as president of a country he had already turned into a graveyard for its inhabitants with Russian help.

The Russians’ brutality and the meanness of the Americans are such that they both are mum on Assad’s use of barrel bombs to turn Aleppo neighborhoods into burial grounds for Syrian children and civilians.

Those who turned a blind eye to the use of chemicals in the two Ghoutas before applauding Assad for handing over his chemicals arsenal have no qualms about turning Geneva-2 into the grave of Geneva-1. 

Bandar back in Moscow for Geneva-2 bazaar

Prince Bandar and President Putin last July 31

Saudi Arabia’s spymaster Prince Bandar bin Sultan arrived in Moscow today for his second round of talks in four months with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

News of his arrival in the Russian capital was broken this afternoon by Khaled al-Matrafi, regional director of Saudi-owned TV news channel Alarabiya.

Prince Bandar’s visit to the Kremlin comes less than a month since Putin, a strong backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, called Saudi King Abdullah to discuss international efforts to end the Syria crisis.

Russia last month sharply criticized Saudi Arabia's decision to reject membership of the UN Security Council over the body's failure to resolve the Syria war, which has been fought for over two-and-a-half years.

The most significant recent contact between Moscow and Riyadh was a meeting between Putin and Prince Bandar last July 31.

I assume the new round of Putin-Bandar talks opens the bazaar between the pair over the upcoming Geneva-2 peace conference slated for January 22.

The UN implicates Assad in Syria war crimes

The UN’s human rights chief says an inquiry has produced evidence that war crimes were authorized in Syria at the “highest level,” including by President Bashar al-Assad.

Navi Pillay

It is the first time the UN’s human rights office has so directly implicated Assad.

Commissioner Navi Pillay said her office held a list of others implicated by the inquiry.

The UN’s commission of inquiry into Syria has produced “massive evidence... [of] very serious crimes, war crimes, crimes against humanity,” Ms Pillay said.

“The scale of viciousness of the abuses being perpetrated by elements on both sides almost defies belief," she said.

The evidence indicated responsibility “at the highest level of government, including the head of state,” she added.

The inquiry has also previously reported it has evidence rebel forces in Syria have been guilty of human rights abuses.

However, the investigators have always said the Syrian government appears to be responsible for the majority, and that the systematic nature of the abuse points to government policy.

Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad was dismissive of Ms Pillay’s remarks.

"She has been talking nonsense for a long time and we don't listen to her," he told AP.

Mekdad was in The Hague at a meeting of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to discuss the effort to destroy Syria's chemical weapons. Mekdad told the BBC's Anna Holligan, Syria needed lorries and armored vehicles to move the chemicals

He told the BBC Syria needed more money and equipment from the international community.

He said Syria needed lorries and armored vehicles to transport chemicals to prevent “terrorists” attacking the vehicles on their way to the port of Latakia, where they will be loaded onto a US naval vessel for destruction.

An OPCW spokesman at the conference told the BBC that any donations of dual-use equipment would be carefully monitored and there would have to be strict guidelines imposed to make sure the machinery could only be used for the purpose of removing the weapons.

Ms Pillay said the UN commission of inquiry had compiled a list of those believed to be directly responsible for serious human rights violations.

It is assumed senior figures in the Syrian military and government are on that list, the BBC's Imogen Foulkes reports from Geneva.

However, the names and specific evidence relating to them remain confidential pending a possible prosecution for war crimes and crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

She has previously called on the UN Security Council to refer Syria to the ICC.

Foulkes says Ms Pillay has repeatedly called on the UN Security Council to refer Syria to the ICC, something it has not so far done. Her surprising candor today may be a sign of her impatience.

Syria is not a state party to the ICC and therefore any investigation into the conflict would need to be mandated by the Security Council.

However, Russia and China have a veto on the council and would be highly unlikely to let such a move pass.

Human rights groups say the regime's use of air power often amounts to war crimes

Ms Pillay's statement is a reminder of the severity of the situation in Syria as preparations are made for the Geneva-2 peace conference next month, the BBC correspondent says.

Ms Pillay, a former judge at the ICC, said perpetrators of crimes must face justice.

"Accountability should be key priority of international community, and I want to make this point again and again as the Geneva-2 talks begin," she said. "I reiterate my call to all member states to refer the situation to the ICC."

Both the government and the opposition National Coalition have said they will attend the conference, but the head of the Western-backed rebel Free Syrian Army has said it will continue fighting during the talks.

The National Coalition says it categorically rejects any role for Assad in any transitional government, while the regime has said it is not going to negotiate a "handover of power".

Also on Monday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based activist group that monitors deaths in the conflict, said its estimate of the number of dead had now reached 125,835, more than a third of them civilians.

Almost 28,000 rebel fighters had died, and more than 50,000 on the side of the government, including both regular soldiers and pro-regime militias. The latter figure also includes almost 500 dead from the Lebanese Hezbollah movement and other foreign Shiite militias.

However, it said it believed these figures were an underestimate as both sides were reticent about reporting deaths in their ranks.

BBC/Agencies

West is “supporting” Assad – FSA ex-commander

One of the top rebel commanders in Syria has accused "hesitant" American and British policy-makers of effectively backing the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

Col. Abdul Jabbar al-Okaidi

Col Abdul Jabbar al-Okaidi said by accepting Assad's offer to scrap his chemical weapons, the United States gave him space to step up conventional attacks.

"The West is supporting the criminal Assad regime," he told Tim Whewell in an interview for BBC Newsnight.

It was his first foreign interview since stepping down this week as head of the Aleppo military council.

The council forms part of the Free Syrian Army, which the West regards as the main moderate grouping on the rebel side.

"When Mr. Obama says chemical weapons are a red line, that gives the green light to conventional weapons," the colonel told the BBC.

"Ballistic missiles, Scud missiles, fighter jets like MIGs and Sukhois, helicopters, rocket launchers and tanks - all these can be used by the regime to kill Syrians. So the Western stance has been very negative towards the Syrian revolution."

He described Britain's approach as "very hesitant."

"They have not provided anything. They didn't stand with the revolution at all.

"If you want to compare the British and French and American position towards [Libya's Moammar] Gaddafi and towards Assad, then the difference is enormous."

Col. Okaidi said Assad has been given space to intensify conventional warfare

"They made a quick decision there by removing the Gaddafi regime and providing help for the Libyan people to remove that dictator -- while here we are about to go into the third year and Britain and the whole world is standing by and watching."

Col Okaidi, a former career officer in the Syrian army, was speaking in the Turkish city of Gaziantep, ahead of a two-day meeting of Syrian opposition politicians in Istanbul starting today.

They will debate whether to attend the so-called "Geneva-2" peace conference.

Western powers and Russia are pushing for the talks to go ahead.

Geneva 'doomed'

But Col Okaidi said he opposed the plan.

"It will not succeed while the regime continues to kill people, bomb them from the air and direct artillery fire at them.

"I don't think under such circumstances anybody can go into negotiations and peace talks with such a criminal regime," he said.

Col. Okaidi warned that the failure of the West to supply weapons to moderate rebel groups was strengthening the hand of the better-armed Islamists.

He said: "In terms of weapons and ammunition we have not received anything at all.

"Some communication kits -- that's all, and some ready meals from the U.S. I don't know how many because my fighters refused to eat them."