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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
UN extends observer mission despite violence
THE UN Security Council unanimously approved a resolution Friday renewing the 300-strong UN observer force in Syria for 30 days, leaving the door open for a possible extension if the government stops using heavy weapons and the escalating violence is reduced to the point where the observers can do their job.
The unarmed observers were sent to Syria three months ago to monitor a ceasefire that never happened, and to watch over the implementation of international envoy Kofi Annan's six-point peace plan, flouted by President Bashar Assad's government.
The council voted shortly after Russia's ambassador to France, Alexander Orlov, said he believed Assad was ready to step down "in a civilized way." The Syrian government denied it, and the Russian Foreign Ministry said the ambassador's statements were "wrongly interpreted."
The UN suspended the observers' patrols and most other activities on June 16 because of increased violence; their mandate was to expire Friday.
The force's future had been in doubt following Russian and Chinese vetoes of a Western-backed UN resolution Thursday pressuring Assad's government to end the civil war by threatening sanctions. Russia said the resolution opened the door to military action, which it opposes.
In Moscow, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin believes "any attempts to act bypassing the UN Security Council will not be effective and only undermine the authority of this international organization."
-- The Associated Press
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition July 21, 2012 A1
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