Turkey objects to transition with Assad

 

Ankara believes that joint United Nations-Arab League envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi's US-Russian initiative for a transition in Syria with President Bashar al-Assad is not possible as the Syrian opposition rejects any compromise with the regime. A Turkish diplomatic official who spoke to Today's Zaman on condition of anonymity stated that it was not an easy task to convince the opposition forces to enter into a transition with Assad, as they have recently furthered their struggle against the Syrian regime. "The opposition would never accept such an initiative. However, if some countries were able to convince the opposition, then there could be a way to work on new ideas. We are open to any initiative which receives the support of the opposition," said the official. Recently, the French daily newspaper Le Figaro spoke of a US-Russian initiative for a transition in Syria, adding that a solution in the offing would involve keeping Assad in power until 2014 while preventing him from further renewing his mandate.