The United States will support peaceful settlement efforts in Syria by new UN and Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, U.S. State Secretary Hillary Clinton said.
“The United States welcomes the decision by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and League of Arab States Secretary General Nabil El Araby to appoint a new Joint Special Representative for Syria,” Clinton said in a statement on Friday.
The United Nations said on Friday that Algeria’s former foreign minister Brahimi has replaced Kofi Annan as peace envoy to Syria.
“Lakhdar Brahimi will continue the pursuit of an end to the conflict and a peaceful transition in Syria,” Clinton said.
“My message to Special Representative Brahimi is simple: The United States stands ready to support you and secure a lasting peace that upholds the legitimate aspirations for a representative government of the people of Syria,” she said.
Clinton thanked Annan for his work.
Annan, who assumed his post in February and authored a six-point peace plan aimed at ending the Syrian conflict, announced in early August that he would quit by the end of the month citing the deadlock at the UN Security Council over ways to resolve the current political crisis in the country.
Since March 2011, the Syrian conflict has claimed up to 20,000 lives, according to estimates by various Syrian opposition groups. The West is pushing for President Bashar al-Assad’s ouster, while Russia and China are trying to prevent outside interference in Syria saying the Assad regime and the opposition are both to blame for the bloodshed.
Moscow welcomed Brahimi’s appointment and pledged support for him.
