Itar-Tass
September 23, 2013
CSTO countries unanimously call for peaceful settlement in Syria
SOCHI: The member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) called for a peaceful settlement in Syria and opposed possible aggression against that country.
“The CSTO member states are unanimous in that the Syrian situation can be settled only by peaceful political methods and that any external use of force would be a gross violation of international law or, using the terms of the U.N. Charter, simply aggression,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said after a CSTO summit in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi on Monday, September 23.
In his opinion, the use of force against Syria would inevitably lead to further destabilization in the country and would have a negative impact on the situation in the CSTO area.
“We are grateful to our CSTO partners for their support of Russia’s efforts to settle the crisis peacefully and for their support of the Russian-American proposal with regard to the Syrian chemical weapons,” Putin said.
He noted the need to use all possibilities to stop the violence in Syria and to start a dialogue between the Syrian authorities and the opposition.
“This is a consolidated position and it is reflected in the statement adopted by the CSTO countries,” he said.
————————————————————————————————————
Itar-Tass
September 23, 2013
CSTO states support efforts to convene Geneva II conference on Syria
MOSCOW: The member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) have supported efforts to convene a peace conference on Syria, commonly known as Geneva II.
“The CSTO member states support the efforts to convene an international conference aimed at laying the groundwork for reconciliation and normalization [of the situation] in Syria,” the CSTO leaders said in a joint statement adopted at their summit in the Russian Black Sea resort city of Sochi on Monday, September 23.
They also “strongly condemn any manifestation of terrorism and violence against the peaceful population, especially religious or ethnic ones, and oppose unlawful actions aimed at further militarization of the internal conflict in Syria.”
The CSTO member states said the crisis in Syria should be resolved as soon as possible “by the Syrians themselves, with respect for the sovereignty of the Syrian Arab Republic,” and called for “an end to the violence in the country and for a broad political dialogue between the authorities and the opposition without preconditions, on the basis of the Geneva Communique of June 30, 2012.”
The statement begins with the expression of concern about the situation in Syria and around it. The signatories called for peace, stability, prosperity and progress in Syria and in the whole of the Middle East.
“The CSTO member states believe that external interference, including the use of force, is unacceptable and can lead to further destabilization of the situation in country and far beyond the region. Furthermore, any international interference in the Syrian conflict in circumvention of the U.N. Security Council and in violation of the U.N. Charter would be unlawful,” the statement said.
The CSTO countries supported Russia’s efforts to settle the Syrian conflict by political and diplomatic methods only and implement the Russian-American agreement for the elimination of Syrian chemical weapons.
Source