Kofi Annan Syrian Peace Plan
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Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder a ...
peace plan for Syria or the six-point peace plan for Syria was launched in March 2012 by the
Arab League The Arab League (, ' ), officially the League of Arab States (, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world. The Arab League was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945, initially with seven members: Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt, Kingdom of Iraq, ...
and the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
(UN), when the violent Syrian conflict or civil war had raged for a year. After the initiators had believed for some days end of March and beginning of April that the Syrian government was willing to comply with the peace plan, new signs of war and statements of politicians gradually cast discouraging shadows over those hopes. By the first of May 2012, the UN had to admit that the peace plan was in dire straits. Heavy government violence on 25 May, and the promise of the
Free Syrian Army The Free Syrian Army (FSA; ) is a Big tent, big-tent coalition of decentralized Syrian opposition (2011–2024), Syrian opposition rebel groups in the Syrian civil war founded on 29 July 2011 by Colonel Riad al-Asaad and six officers who defe ...
(FSA) on 1 June to resume its ‘defensive operations’, made clear that this peace initiative had, for the time being, run aground. Several new peace initiatives would follow, recently the attempt in 2012–2013 at a Geneva II Middle East peace conference and the Russian initiative in November 2013 for (peace) talks in Moscow.


Chronology


UN-Arab League peace plan

On 23 February 2012, the evening before an international “ Friends of Syria” conference organised by the
Arab League The Arab League (, ' ), officially the League of Arab States (, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world. The Arab League was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945, initially with seven members: Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt, Kingdom of Iraq, ...
in
Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...
, the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
and the Arab League together appointed
Kofi Annan Kofi Atta Annan (8 April 193818 August 2018) was a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh secretary-general of the United Nations from 1997 to 2006. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize. He was the founder a ...
as their envoy to Syria.Syria unrest: Opposition seeks arms pledge.
''BBC News'', 24 February 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
70 nations were present on the conference, Russia and China not among them; Syria called those nations attending “historic enemies of the Arabs”. On 16 March, Kofi Annan submitted a six-point peace plan to the UN Security Council (see below), asking the Syrian government “to address the legitimate aspirations and concerns of the Syrian people”, cease hostilities, pullback military concentrations from towns, while simultaneously the Envoy would seek similar commitments from the Syrian opposition and other “elements”."Kofi Annan's six-point plan for Syria"
, ''
Al Jazeera Al Jazeera Media Network (AJMN; , ) is a private-media conglomerate headquartered in Wadi Al Sail, Doha, funded in part by the government of Qatar. The network's flagship channels include Al Jazeera Arabic and Al Jazeera English, which pro ...
'', 27 March 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
On 24 March 2012, Kofi Annan flew to
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
in an effort to secure Russian support for his plan.Syria’s armed opposition chiefs form military council to unite ranks
, ''alarabiya'', 24 March 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2013.


Presumed compliance of government and opposition

Sources like Al Jazeera and Reuters announced that Syrian president
Bashar al-Assad Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator Sources characterising Assad as a dictator: who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...
on 27 March accepted the six-point peace plan"Text of Annan's six-point peace plan for Syria"
, ''Reuters'', 4 April 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
and would be working to implement it. ''The New York Times'' and others announced that on 2 April the Syrian government promised to withdraw its security forces and heavy weaponry from major population centers and complete that withdrawal on 10 April.
''The New York Times'', 3 April 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
However, Syrian opposition activists reported heavy Syrian army shelling in the cities of
Hama Hama ( ', ) is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria. It is located north of Damascus and north of Homs. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. With a population of 996,000 (2023 census), Hama is one o ...
and
Homs Homs ( ; ), known in pre-Islamic times as Emesa ( ; ), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is Metres above sea level, above sea level and is located north of Damascus. Located on the Orontes River, Homs is ...
on 3 April. The BBC reported heavy rocket shelling in Homs on 4 April. Retrieved 28 October 2013. On 5 April 2012, Annan told the UN General Assembly that the cease-fire deadline for the Syrian government would be 6 a.m. local time on Tuesday 10 April, and for the rebels 6 a.m. on 12 April.Syria: Caveat in cease-fire compliance.
''United Press International'', 6 April 2012. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
After that UN Assembly meeting, Syrian UN ambassador Jaafari however said “a crystal-cut commitment” in writing from the U.S. France, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia to stop aiding rebel fighters was “an integral part of the understanding” between
Damascus Damascus ( , ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in the Levant region by population, largest city of Syria. It is the oldest capital in the world and, according to some, the fourth Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. Kno ...
and Annan. This announcement denied Syria's presumed commitment to withdraw its forces from the cities by 10 April; both Annan and the U.S. State Department had no reaction on it. Annan did say, 5 or 6 April, that if the cease-fire was successful, an unarmed U.N. monitoring mission (see subsection directly below) of some 200 to 250 observers could be brought into Syria. And even on 14 April, the UN Security Council meeting adopting Resolution 2042 stated that the Envoy (= mr. Annan) assessed that “as of 12 April, the parties appeared to be observing a cessation of fire”.Security Council unanimously adopts Resolution 2042 (2012), authorizing Advance Team to monitor ceasefire in Syria
, press release Security Council 14 April 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2013.


United Nations Supervision Mission

The United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) was the unarmed
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
peacekeeping Peacekeeping comprises activities, especially military ones, intended to create conditions that favor lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed w ...
mission in
Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...
, set up in April 2012. It was commanded by Norwegian major general Robert Mood. Although observers remained in the country, Mood suspended their mission on June 16, 2012, mentioning "escalating violence." Observers would conduct no further patrols and stay in their current positions until the suspension was lifted.


Conceding failure

Hervé Ladsous, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, said on 1 May that both the Syrian government and the opposition were violating the cease-fire. On 25 May 2012, in two opposition-controlled villages in the Houla region in central Syria, 49 children, 34 women and 25 men were killed in what is called the Houla massacre. The UN, after investigations, holds Syrian troops and pro-government militia responsible. On 1 June, the FSA announced that it was resuming “defensive operations”.Deadly violence flares in Syria as EU-Russia seek solutions
. ''Alarabiya'', 4 June 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
Around 2–3 June, president al-Assad in response vowed to crush an anti-government uprising. These events seemed to mark the failing of this Kofi Annan peace initiative.


Six-point peace plan

The peace plan, reportedly accepted by Syrian president Bashar al-Assad on 27 March 2012, calls on the Syrian authorities to: :''(1) commit to work with the Envoy in an inclusive Syrian-led political process to address the legitimate aspirations and concerns of the Syrian people, and, to this end, commit to appoint an empowered interlocutor when invited to do so by the Envoy; :''(2) commit to stop the fighting and achieve urgently an effective United Nations supervised cessation of armed violence in all its forms by all parties to protect civilians and stabilise the country.'' :''To this end, the Syrian government should immediately cease troop movements towards, and end the use of heavy weapons in, population centres, and begin pullback of military concentrations in and around population centres.'' :''As these actions are being taken on the ground, the Syrian government should work with the Envoy to bring about a sustained cessation of armed violence in all its forms by all parties with an effective United Nations supervision mechanism. '' :''Similar commitments would be sought by the Envoy from the opposition and all relevant elements to stop the fighting and work with him to bring about a sustained cessation of armed violence in all its forms by all parties with an effective United Nations supervision mechanism;'' :''(3) ensure timely provision of humanitarian assistance to all areas affected by the fighting, and to this end, as immediate steps, to accept and implement a daily two hour humanitarian pause and to coordinate exact time and modalities of the daily pause through an efficient mechanism, including at local level;'' :''(4) intensify the pace and scale of release of arbitrarily detained persons, including especially vulnerable categories of persons, and persons involved in peaceful political activities, provide without delay through appropriate channels a list of all places in which such persons are being detained, immediately begin organizing access to such locations and through appropriate channels respond promptly to all written requests for information, access or release regarding such persons;'' :''(5) ensure freedom of movement throughout the country for journalists and a non-discriminatory visa policy for them;'' :''(6) respect freedom of association and the right to demonstrate peacefully as legally guaranteed.''


Annan's resignation and Brahimi's succession

On 2 August 2012, Kofi Annan announced to step down as UN-Arab League mediator in Syria on 31 August. Annan pointed to the Syrian government's refusal to implement the six-point plan, the escalating military campaign of the Syrian opposition and the lack of unity in the
UN Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
as causes for the bloodshed to continue. Both Russia and the Syrian government said they regretted Annan's decision to quit.Annan quits as Syria peace envoy; …
, alarabiya, 2 August 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
On 17 August 2012, Lakhdar Brahimi was appointed as the new special envoy to Syria from the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
and the
Arab League The Arab League (, ' ), officially the League of Arab States (, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world. The Arab League was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945, initially with seven members: Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt, Kingdom of Iraq, ...
(see Lakhdar Brahimi peace envoy for Syria).


See also

* Syrian conflict peace proposals * International reactions to the Syrian civil war * Robert Mood (assistant to Envoy mr. Annan, leader of negotiations)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kofi Annan peace plan for Syria International reactions to the Syrian civil war 2012 in Syria Syrian peace process Syria peace plan