Jarba: No Political Solution without Tipping the Balance on the Ground

Ahmad Jarba, president of the Syrian Coalition, stresses that “a political solution will not see the light unless the FSA is supplied the weapons that enable it to tip the balance on the ground, especially anti-aircraft weapons that would spare the civilians more bloodshed.” Jarba’s remarks were made during a meeting with Lakhdar Brahimi on the sidelines of the Arab summit in Kuwait. “The Assad regime is responsible for the breakdown of Geneva II talks. The delegation of the Syrian Coalition took the necessary step towards bringing about a political solution. However, the aggressive behavior of the regime’s delegation closed all doors towards a political settlement to end the tragedy of the Syrian people, especially with the regime’s announcement that the criminal Bashar al-Assad will run for re-election, which is an insult to all the people of Syria who either were killed, wounded or displaced,” Jarba said. Jarba also gave a detailed overview of the military development on all fronts and the progress made by the FSA in Aleppo, Hama, Dara’a and Latakia. For his part, Brahimi said he would not be calling for a third round of talks in Geneva unless he is convinced that it will be fruitful. “There are many signs on the regime’s intention to hold presidential elections, in contravention of the principle that Geneva negotiations are built on. The United Nations cannot but be interested in Syrian affairs, but it derives its strength from the agreement of its member states. I am afraid it is unlikely this agreement can be reached in light of the Ukrainian crisis and its negative repercussions on the role of international mediation in the Syrian crisis.” (Source: Syrian Coalition)