Russia Open to Syria Transition in Shift Away From Assad

Russia Open to Syria Transition in Shift Away From Assad

www.businessweek.com

As Syria slides toward civil war, Russia is signaling that it no longer views President Bashar al- Assad’s position as tenable and is working with the U.S. to seek an orderly transition.

A U.S. delegation headed by Fred Hof, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s special adviser on Syria, is scheduled to meet with Russian counterparts June 8 in Moscow.....

(visit the link for the full news article)

As I've stated elsewhere

Assad should show he is smarter than good old Qaddafi and transfer his Billions from his Swiss accounts to Russia and then do everybody and himself a big favor.

Retire in Russia...

Then the killing stops, He and his family would live safely and in peace and then he can talk all the crap about the West he wants from the safety of Russia. That would be the smart thing to do and great propaganda IMO.

Your thoughts?

www.businessweek.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by SLAYER69
My thougts?

No military action. Hurt Assad where it counts.

In his wallet.

Cut all funding/foreign aid to Syria and any country helping them. On either side.

I guess Putin must be an ATS member.

He's listening.

Interesting, since June 6th when it was published, things changed a bit.

Russia went back to a neutral position instead of explicit understanding with US, the SCO/Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting took place with opposition against change in Syria/Iran, and Syrian businessmen gave millions of financial funding to one faction of Syria's split rebels and more millions are in process of being donated.

It's going to be another week of careful observation/analysis...

reply to post by mlirenr


That's just it...


Todays the 8th, we'll see what transpires if anything. Maybe we can calm some of the WW-III hysteria crowd out there.

reply to post by SLAYER69


According to the Bloomberg news you posted talks were scheduled today(8th).

But a report from France's news agency wire Agence France Presse just 2 hours 31 minutes ago sent this, just snippet quoted, long article -

US fails to win Russia call for Assad ouster

sg.finance.yahoo.com/news/us-fails-win-russia-call-123745702.html

Russia said Friday after high-stakes talks with the US pointman on Syria that it did not know if President Bashar al-Assad intended to leave power but made no formal call on him to go.

Senior Russian diplomats said they also told visiting special envoy Fred Hof that Moscow was willing to agree changes to international mediator Kofi Annan's peace plan for Syria as long as they kept the tattered initiative alive.

The comments signalled no shift in Russia's position on a crisis that has killed more than 13,500 people and has set Moscow at loggerheads with the West since strongman Vladimir Putin's return to an historic third Kremlin term.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had dispatched Hof to Moscow after agreeing not to make Assad's ouster a precondition for a settlement in Syria, while vowing to make it the ultimate goal.

(...)

reply to post by SLAYER69


Instead of retiring in Russia, he could move to Novisibirsk and become mayor if they decide to move the capitol from Moscow!

Move Russia's capitol from Moscow to Siberia?

I hope he's packed his winter clothes...

reply to post by mlirenr




Thanks for the headsup.

Well in light of what has been presented I guess Civil war is the way everybody involved wants it to go. My heart goes out to the people caught in the middle.

You know I was just reading RIANOVOSTI

This grabbed my attention. ...
Source

Russia – along with China – has twice vetoed UN resolutions against Damascus over what it says is a pro-rebel bias. Moscow has, however, fully backed UN envoy Kofi Annan’s faltering peace plan for Syria.

The talks came two days after Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov dropped the strongest hint yet that Moscow may be coming round to the West’s view that Assad’s departure is the only solution to the 15-months of bloodshed that the United Nations says has so far claimed at least 9,000 lives.

I wonder if Russia is simply supporting Kofi's publicly while secretively wants the whole attempt to fail so as to have Russia then somehow step in and solve the situation and come out smelling like roses while the UN would get egg on it's face...

reply to post by SLAYER69

I was wonder if Russia was simply supporting Kofi's publicly while secretively wants the whole attempt to fail so as to have Russia some how step in and solve the situation and come out smelling like roses while the UN would get egg on it's face...

I'm sure Russia knew that Kofi's plan was a no winner from the word go. This keep Assad in power and Russia still has influence in the area. IMO, the world politicians will continue to do a bunch of talking while solving nothing. It's about power, not peace.

updated Bloomberg news

Russia Holds Syria Talks With U.S. to Narrow Differences
By Henry Meyer - Jun 8, 2012 15:08 PM GMT

www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-08/russia-holds-syria-talks-with-u-s-to-narrow-differences.html

(...)

The two sides “exchanged opinions about ways to facilitate a peaceful settlement in Syria with an emphasis on mobilizing international support” for all sides to implement United Nations envoy Kofi Annan’s cease-fire plan, the ministry said, adding that “practical aspects” of a Russian proposal for a conference on Syria were also discussed.

The former Cold War foes, at odds over U.S. and western efforts to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a Russian ally, are in disagreement over Russia’s initiative to involve Iran in talks to end the 15-month bloodshed in Syria and find a possible successor to Assad.

Security forces clashed with protesters around the country today, with at least 26 people killed, mostly in the countryside around Damascus and Dara’a in the south, according to Al Arabiya television, which cited activists.

(...)

Putin has picked up “positive” feedback from France, China and Iran on a proposal to gather all nations that have sway over Assad and the opposition to come together for talks, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said yesterday.
Saudis, Iranians

Saudi Arabia and Iran should both play a role in the meeting, Bogdanov said today in an interview with Russian state broadcaster RT. Russia is holding “intensive consultations” with the possible participants, according to Bogdanov.

“The Syrian crisis and attempts to find a peaceful political resolution of this crisis may provide a basis for reconciling the interests of all the leading, most influential players,” Bogdanov told RT, according to a transcript of his comments.

Still, the initiative was rejected by U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, even after it got support from Annan. Iran, whose Shiite-led rulers have close ties to Assad’s minority Alawite regime, is Syria’s strongest backer along with Russia and China.

This week’s preliminary round of discussions in Moscow will lay the groundwork ahead of a meeting between Obama and Putin at the Group of 20 Summit June 18-19 in Los Cabos, Mexico. Putin, inaugurated for a six-year term on May 7, skipped last month’s summit of the Group of Eight nations at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland.

(...)

The U.S. delegation will try to forge a common approach to moving Assad aside, with the goal of replacing him with someone acceptable to both sides in the conflict, according to two U.S officials speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Russia is looking to the proposed international conference to pressure Saudi Arabia and Qatar to halt military and financial help for the Syrian rebels, a senior lawmaker in the Russian ruling party said.

“Instead of supporting the armed actions of the opposition, we want them to exert a restraining influence,” Alexei Pushkov, the head of the foreign-affairs committee in the lower house of parliament, said in a telephone interview yesterday in Moscow.

reply to post by jam321


I hear ya...

In the meantime people die and all involved sides sit back and point fingers at the other and make accusations. I wonder who is making the most off of supplying either side with arms?

reply to post by mlirenr


Cool

Ok two things that popped out

1.)

Saudi Arabia and Iran should both play a role in the meeting, Bogdanov said today in an interview with Russian state broadcaster RT. Russia is holding “intensive consultations” with the possible participants, according to Bogdanov.

I'm thinking all involved would love to prevent these two from fermenting and supporting another Shia/Sunni sectarian conflict like the two of them have been doing over in Iraq.

2.)

Russia is looking to the proposed international conference to pressure Saudi Arabia and Qatar to halt military and financial help for the Syrian rebels, a senior lawmaker in the Russian ruling party said.

ALL involved should stop their support in either side of this situation and let the Syrians decide for themselves [That includes Russia stepping away from the plate as well]

I expect this is going to be a rocky road for all involved as it is a bit more complex than bartering with a used car salesman with potentially a lot more at stake and a heap of details involved. This issue has fractured the members of the UN security council and as such could fracture the world if a settlment is not reached and escilation continues.

The humanitiarian ploy the US is trying to employ fails a basic logic test as military intervention just escilates conflict, substantially increases the death toll and causes governmental chaos as it very gradually rebuilds. Considering Syria is already a democray it is horrid what is going on, but most here already know democracy is pretty sick these days and more of a buzz word than a value. So what is going on, talk of an oil pipeline to the Caspian sea is one motive going around and looks to fail just as similar reasons have been promoted with Afganistan, as the conflict still continues 10 years on. Sure some US oil company would grab it given a chance, but such projects in a war zone are doomed.

Isreal wanting to extend its boarders and political influence is what I currently see as the main US agenda. Just what exactly is the problem with Assad? Can he see a bad deal a mile away and has the guts to say no? The Syrian Central Bank is currently under attack by the millitants so is this what it is all about as with Libya? A multiprong assult to gain government, economic and resources of the nation? If America has not got enough reason to get Assad on board then just how reasonable is America being?

I am not quite sure what to make of Saudi Ariba jumping in, would not be suprised if there is a long term divide and conquer plan in play for the muslim brotherhood.

I think the whole situation is a disgrace & tragedy personally.

It's going to get a lot worse before it gets any better and a whole lot of people are going to die needlessly. I have no problem if grown men want to slaughter each other by the bushel, I really don't! It's the children being orphaned, maimed or killed that gets me

Civil War.

That's where this is heading. This will get worse,before it gets better.

reply to post by SLAYER69


That was reported two days ago, businessweek is slow

Here you go SLAYER69
Russia Open to Syria Transition in Shift Away From Assad
2 days ago.

Has it happened? Nope.
Copy And Pate Journalism at very finest!

Originally posted by jam321
I'm sure Russia knew that Kofi's plan was a no winner from the word go. This keep Assad in power and Russia still has influence in the area. IMO, the world politicians will continue to do a bunch of talking while solving nothing. It's about power, not peace.

By choosing Kofi Anan, it already went to show UN sec's leadership capability.

Kofi is an abject consistant failure, an idiot and a liability to UN for world peace.

His spectacular failure and inaptitude was during the 80's Burma immolating monks rebellion against the military junta. The world stared in horror as the monks burnt themselves, and the continued murder of thousands of monks later on in that country by those repressisve leaders.

Kofi lead the hope of mankind, to end the slaughter there, but it only continued for another 20 years.

UN is the epitome of diplomacy and best gentlemenly noble behaviour, a tradition started by England. BUT there's a line drawn between gentleman behaviour and inaptness if not sheer idiocy. Ask the Brits. They knew when to apply it, how to do it, and never to be deluded AT ALL TIMES, even if the empire had to break up into the commonwealth.

Kofi never knew or understood. He took credit for Burma when it was ACTUALLY ASEAN member states whom had positively engaged the Burmese rulers for years to end its repression and on the path to democracy, with help by free world's sanction on that state.

If this deluded poppinjay, used by the tyrant Putin who knew about that idiotic failure of a human, to delay the rescue of our fellow brothers and sisters in Syria, had any decency left, he should IMMEDIATEL RESIGN. He is wasting time, effort and space when another could have took his place with a better and more realistic ' diplomatic cease and desist' plan.

reply to post by Agent_USA_Supporter



You missed the angle of this thread of today being the 8th.

A U.S. delegation headed by Fred Hof, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s special adviser on Syria, is scheduled to meet with Russian counterparts June 8 in Moscow.

The date mentioned when the talks would be held

It would be best if Assad transferred power, and i do believe everyone wants to see the killing stopped in Syria.

The problems are EGO's just like every problem the world faces. Assad needs to put the need of the people above his own and it will end.

Everyone will be happy.