* Juppe says it will seek stronger resolution if plan fails
* France hopes Russian position will evolve
* New Syrian opposition group to form in Paris on Thursday
(Adds creation of new Syrian opposition group)
By John Irish
PARIS, April 25 (Reuters) – France wants to see 300 U.N.
observers in Syria within two weeks and will push for a “Chapter
7″ resolution at the United Nations unless Damascus complies
with the terms of a peace plan by early May, Foreign Minister
Alain Juppe said on Wednesday.
Chapter 7 of the U.N. charter allows the Security Council to
authorise actions which can ultimately include the use of
military force.
Speaking to reporters after meeting opponents of Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad, Juppe said there had to be a rapid
deployment of observers as the plan was “extremely compromised”.
“This cannot continue indefinitely. We want to see observers
in sufficient numbers, at least 300 … deployed as quickly as
possible,” Juppe said, adding that he wanted them in Syria
within “two weeks not three months”.
U.N. peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous has said it will take
a month to deploy the first 100 monitors.
Juppe said it was “unacceptable” for Damascus to try to
dictate which nationalities could take part in the mission.
International envoy Kofi Annan said on Tuesday Syria had
failed to comply with a pledge to withdraw weapons from
population centers, and towns where citizens met U.N. truce
monitors may have been attacked.
Juppe said that May 5, when Annan presents a report to the
Security Council on Syria, would be the “moment of truth”.
“If that does not work, we cannot allow the regime to defy
us. We would have to move to a new stage with a Chapter 7
resolution at the United Nations to take a new step to stop this
tragedy,” Juppe said.
The French government of President Nicolas Sarkozy, who
faces the second round of a tough re-election battle on May 6,
has long led calls for Assad to step aside.
It has also said it would support military action if there
was a U.N. mandate, something that remains unlikely given Moscow
and Beijing’s opposition to intervention.
When asked if he thought Russia would support a Chapter 7
resolution, Juppe said Moscow had already accepted resolutions
enabling Annan’s mission and the sending of observers.
“I hope they will realise that the regime is blocking the
process and I hope that their position will evolve in light of
what’s happening on the ground,” he said.
ALTERNATIVE SYRIAN OPPOSITION
Juppe met several opposition Syrians on Wednesday, including
Rima Flihan, a writer and activist, who fled Syria in September,
human rights activist Suhayr Atassi and Alawite writer Samar
Yazbek.
Paris has given diplomatic backing to the opposition Syrian
National Council (SNC), but has also urged it to do more to
appeal to Syria’s minority Christians and Alawite Muslims.
Another group of opponents to Assad, comprising members of
Syria’s civil society and the Free Syrian Army, are set to
unveil a National Transitional Government in Paris on Thursday.
Its Saudi-based spokesman Nofal al-Dawalibi told Reuters the
SNC had failed to represent Syrians and made it harder for the
international community to support the opposition.
“Our point of view is that we can’t unify the opposition in
Syria because we don’t have the regulations, laws or land where
we can all meet to discuss these matters, so it’s impossible to
have a legislative body, so we are creating an executive body.”
He said the “government” would be made up of 35 people
inside Syria and five or six on the outside who would provide
finance, weapons, humanitarian aid and coordination.
Dawalibi said his group had spoken to French, U.S. and Gulf
Arab officials, although declined to say whether Saudi Arabia
was backing his organisation.
(Reporting By John Irish; editing by Daniel Flynn)
