- News>
- World
Syria abstains from UNSC vote on lifting Iraq sanctions
United Nations, May 23: Syria, the only Arab member of the Security Council and Iraq`s neighbour, did not attend the council meeting which lifted the tough economic sanctions against Baghdad but hours later, its representative said Damascus would have voted for the resolution had it been given more time to consider the draft.
United Nations, May 23: Syria, the only Arab member of the Security Council and Iraq's neighbour, did not attend the council meeting which lifted the tough economic sanctions against Baghdad but hours later, its representative said Damascus would have voted for the resolution had it been given more time to consider the draft.
Syrian deputy UN ambassador Fayssal Mekdad blamed the council for not giving his country a little more time to reach a decision on the US drafted resolution lifting the sanctions.
Syria, he said, represented Arab world in the council and had been holding consultations with other Arab states. It had sought a little more time to enable it to come to a decision. The council waited for the Syrians to turn up for about half an hour yesterday morning and then proceeded with the vote.
In statement a few hours later, Mekdad said his country would have voted in favour of the resolution had the time it had requested been granted before the vote was undertaken. But that, he asserted, should not be taken to mean that Syria has changed it position that the US led military action against Iraq was an "illegitimate war."
In an interview, he said the United States and Britain had waged what they called a "war of liberation" and it is to be seen how long they occupy the country.
Mekdad said Syria had received the Arabic version of the draft resolution only on Wednesday and noted there was a seven-hour time difference between New York and Damascus and that ambassador Mikhail Wehbe was in Syria discussing the text with the government when the vote was taken. Once a vote is pressed on the resolution, the council gives 24 hours to members to get instruction from their capitals.
But diplomats said by absenting itself, Syria had avoided voting for authorising occupation by the United States and Britain for an indefinite period and saved itself from embarrassment of voting against or abstaining on the resolution, which would lift the sanctions.
This was the second time that Syria absented itself from a vote in the council. The first time it did not show up for vote was in March last year when the council was voting on a resolution which would have condemned suicide bombings against Israel while asking Tel Aviv to withdraw its forces. Bureau Report
Syria, he said, represented Arab world in the council and had been holding consultations with other Arab states. It had sought a little more time to enable it to come to a decision. The council waited for the Syrians to turn up for about half an hour yesterday morning and then proceeded with the vote.
In statement a few hours later, Mekdad said his country would have voted in favour of the resolution had the time it had requested been granted before the vote was undertaken. But that, he asserted, should not be taken to mean that Syria has changed it position that the US led military action against Iraq was an "illegitimate war."
In an interview, he said the United States and Britain had waged what they called a "war of liberation" and it is to be seen how long they occupy the country.
Mekdad said Syria had received the Arabic version of the draft resolution only on Wednesday and noted there was a seven-hour time difference between New York and Damascus and that ambassador Mikhail Wehbe was in Syria discussing the text with the government when the vote was taken. Once a vote is pressed on the resolution, the council gives 24 hours to members to get instruction from their capitals.
But diplomats said by absenting itself, Syria had avoided voting for authorising occupation by the United States and Britain for an indefinite period and saved itself from embarrassment of voting against or abstaining on the resolution, which would lift the sanctions.
This was the second time that Syria absented itself from a vote in the council. The first time it did not show up for vote was in March last year when the council was voting on a resolution which would have condemned suicide bombings against Israel while asking Tel Aviv to withdraw its forces. Bureau Report