Annan briefs UN Security Council on Syria

Special envoy Kofi Annan yesterday warned that the Syria conflict could have a “serious impact” regionally if not handled properly, saying he will return to Damascus if an advance team makes progress on implementing his proposals to end the bloodshed in the country. The former U.N. secretary-general was speaking to reporters after a videoconference briefing delivered to the Security Council in New York, in which he appealed for unity from its members in order to send a strong signal of support for his mission. “The first objective is for all of us to end the violence and human rights abuses and the killings and get unimpeded access for humanitarian access to the needy,” Annan said, “and of course the all-important issue of political process that will lead to a democratic Syria, fulfilling the aspirations of the Syrian people.” Russia and China have vetoed two U.S. and European-backed council resolutions that would have condemned the embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's deadly crackdown, which has left more than 8,000 people dead, saying they were unbalanced and demanded that only the government stop attacks, not the opposition. A long-time Syrian ally, Russia has also accused Western powers of fuelling the conflict by backing the rebels. Listen