The Security Council’s mixed signals on Syria
Today’s Security Council statement on Syria is being heralded as a belated but still powerful signal to the Syrian regime that the international community is reaching the limits of its patience with the Assad regime. It can be read that way. The Council "condemns the widespread violations of human rights and the use of force ...
Today's Security Council statement on Syria is being heralded as a belated but still powerful signal to the Syrian regime that the international community is reaching the limits of its patience with the Assad regime. It can be read that way. The Council "condemns the widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians by the Syrian authorities." The willingness of Russia, China, India, and Brazil to back that condemnation is important.
Today’s Security Council statement on Syria is being heralded as a belated but still powerful signal to the Syrian regime that the international community is reaching the limits of its patience with the Assad regime. It can be read that way. The Council "condemns the widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians by the Syrian authorities." The willingness of Russia, China, India, and Brazil to back that condemnation is important.
But the statement sends other signals as well. It explicitly warns against attacks on government institutions. On the view of the Security Council, a full-scale revolt by the Syrian people against the government–a regime that has been killing protesters for weeks–is not justified. The Council statement also insists that the "only solution to the current crisis in Syria is through an inclusive and Syrian-led political process." The meaning is clear: outside intervention is not a solution.
The Council is willing to concede that the Assad government has gone too far. But it’s not willing to acknowledge the right of Syrians to forcefully evict their repressive rulers and it does not accept that outsiders have the right to assist them in doing so.
David Bosco is a professor at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies. He is the author of The Poseidon Project: The Struggle to Govern the World’s Oceans. Twitter: @multilateralist
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