The United States has asserted its commitments to the Syrian people despite the surprise resignation of U.N.-Arab League special envoy Kofi Annan after his constant efforts for a solution to the Syrian crisis repeatedly failed.
In a statement issued in the wake of Annan's resignation, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said she spoke with Annan and thanked him on U.S. behalf for his service as special envoy to the violence-wracked country.
"Five months ago, he took on the heavy task of trying to bring an end to the killing of civilians in Syria and to forge a path toward a peaceful political transition and an inclusive, representative post-Assad Syria. He worked tirelessly to try to build consensus in the international community, end the bloodshed, and usher in a government that would meet the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people. Unfortunately, the Security Council was blocked from giving him key tools to advance his efforts," Clinton said.
"The United States continues to stand with you and we remain committed to an effective and swift political transition as envisioned under the Annan framework," Clinton said in her message to the Syrian people.
In another statement, Susan E. Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, thanked Annan for his dedication, service, and determined efforts to promote a peaceful resolution of the crisis in Syria.
She commended Annan for "taking on such a thankless and difficult task at great personal cost." His mission could never have succeeded so long as the Assad regime continuously broke its pledges to implement the Six Point Plan and persisted in using horrific violence against its own people, said the U.S. Ambassador.
She alleged that "when the Security Council failed to heed Annan's repeated calls for collective and significant consequences for non-compliance with its prior resolutions, those members who blocked this action effectively made Annan's mission impossible."
Stating that the Assad regime's days are numbered, Rice said "the only question is how many more lives must be lost before it falls." She pledged that Washington "will continue to work urgently with our partners in the international community—including the over 100 countries in the Friends of the Syrian People—to accelerate the transition, provide support to the Opposition, and meet the increasingly grave humanitarian needs of the Syrian people."
Earlier in the day, Annan declared at a press conference in Geneva that his decision to quit as U.N.-Arab League special envoy for Syria was prompted by the increasing militarization of the Syrian conflict as well as the lack of unity among the Security Council members in resolving the crisis.
A former U.N. Secretary-General, Annan was appointed in late February to serve as the joint representative of the United Nations and the League of Arab States to help resolve the crisis. He put forward a six-point peace plan, which called for an end to violence, access for humanitarian agencies to provide relief to those in need, release of detainees, start of inclusive political dialogue, and unrestricted access to the country for the international media.
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