Lebanon Welcomes Russian-Arab Initiative on Syria

Lebanon welcomes the Russian initiative on Syria that was adopted by Arab states during Saturday’s meeting in Cairo, Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour said on Sunday, while reiterating insistence on “Lebanon’s stances concerning the previous resolutions” passed by the Arab League.

“Lebanon welcomed the Russian initiative and the points agreed on with the Russian side, reiterating its stances on the previous resolutions,” Mansour said in Beirut, after taking part in the Cairo talks between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Arab counterparts.

Lavrov and the Arab ministers called for an end to the bloodshed in Syria "whatever its source," as they struggled to find common ground on ways to resolve the conflict.

Reading out a joint statement, Lavrov and Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani said they also agreed on setting up a mechanism for "objective monitoring" in Syria and had agreed on no foreign intervention.

They also called for "unhindered humanitarian access" in Syria and support for the current mission to Damascus of U.N.-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan.

They said the five-point statement was based on a U.N. General Assembly resolution passed on February 16 and on previous Arab League resolutions.

Mansour noted that there is a difference between “the points proposed by the Russian side and the Arab League’s previous resolution.”

Lavrov “demanded a ceasefire by all parties and called for heeding the humanitarian needs of the Syrian people, without mentioning the regime or a regime change,” Mansour said.

He also called on the Syrian opposition to “comply with these decisions and with the agreed points.”