Translated material
Against the wind
Damascus did not like the UN Security Council resolution
After the unanimous adoption on Monday of UN Security Council Resolution No. 1636 on the report of the commission investigating the assassination of ex-Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the head of this commission, German Detlev Mehlis, returned to Beirut yesterday to continue its work. And Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk Sharaa said that the resolution is unfair, as it repeats the conclusions of the commission. The same “initially proceeded from prejudices that led to the condemnation of Syria even before the trial.” For this reason, on Monday the minister compared the methods of investigation to “medieval ones.” True, he used this definition after his British colleague Jack Straw called the murder of Rafik Hariri “medieval.”Sharaa is surprised that the Syrian intelligence services are suspected of the February 14 terrorist attack against Hariri in Beirut simply because they were in Lebanon at the time. In this case, the minister said on Monday when discussing the resolution, “the US intelligence services should be accused of knowing in advance about the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.” British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw called the comparison "grossly ridiculous and insensitive." Western diplomats at the UN believe that Sharaa's behavior will lead to even greater isolation of Damascus, despite the Syrian leadership's expressed willingness to cooperate with the Mehlis commission.
However, according to Sharaa, Syria’s cooperation “was complete” before. Therefore, “the most dangerous thing in the resolution is the borrowing of the Mehlis Commission’s statement that Syria cooperated only in form and not in content.” As a result, the Syrian stated, the document was adopted “within the framework of Chapter 7 of the UN Charter.” It outlines options for the use of force in response to “actions regarding threats to the peace, breaches of the peace and acts of aggression.”
Damascus seems to be aware that the threat of events following the Iraqi scenario looms over it. The ruling Baath Party in Syria yesterday called on the population to unite against the “intrigues of external forces” that fit into the “American doctrine of the Greater Middle East.”
UN Security Council Resolution 1636 requires Syria to begin cooperation with the Mehlis Commission “in full and without any conditions” by December 15. And also to detain those Syrian citizens whom international investigators consider suspects in the murder of Hariri, an opponent of the Syrian military presence in Lebanon. If these requirements are not met, the possibility of taking unspecified measures against Damascus is envisaged.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said yesterday that “thanks to the efforts of the Russian and other delegations,” the final text of the resolution is “fundamentally different from the initial draft” proposed by the United States, France and Great Britain and is much tougher. But, as we see, although the resolution was softened, the Syrians are unhappy. But in vain, because the threat of automatic imposition of sanctions against Syria has been averted. These may include economic, transport and communications and diplomatic embargoes.
Damascus has already called for an emergency summit of the Arab League. But for now, only Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and King Abdullah of Jordan are expected to meet with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. As for Syria's neighbor Iraq, President Jalal Talabani said he is "categorically against" the use of his country's territory to strike Syria, but "cannot impose his opinion on the Americans."
The United States has recently been dissatisfied with the fact that militants are allegedly infiltrating Iraq from Syria. The Syrians now claim that last week they sharply strengthened border security, investing $20 million in the construction of border barriers.