France, Qatar agree firm, determined position on Syria

French President Francois Hollande on Tuesday held talks here with Qatari Foreign Minister Khalid Al-Attiyah to discuss the Syrian crisis and both men agreed on the need for "a firm and determined" stance on this issue. A diplomatic source close to the talks told KUNA that the Qatari official had thanked President Hollande for his role in preparing a UN resolution on the Syrian chemical weapons issue. Qatar said that the disarmament of the Syrian regime in this context "should take place through a binding resolution in the Security Council." Both sides agreed on this approach, the source said, and on "the need to maintain a firm position" vis-@-vis Syria. They underlined their "great convergence of views" on the Syrian question. Al-Attiyah's visit comes after intensive consultations between Foreign Ministers of France, the US and Britain, and indeed in close collaboration with President Hollande, who met the Foreign Ministers of the "P3" on Monday here. France is entering UN Security Council negotiations "in good faith" and is hoping for full cooperation by all members, particularly Syria's ally, Russia. Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius is in Moscow on Tuesday to try to convince the Russians of the need for a "binding resolution" with "serious consequences" for Syria in the case of non-compliance by Damascus. But Russia is not inclined to accept a resolution under Chapter VII that provides for automatic sanctions and "all necessary measures" to force compliance with the chemical disarmament agreement, reached last Friday between the US and Russia in Geneva. The source remarked that Russia is a partner for France and a partner in the Security Council and added that negotiations will take place at the end of the week on the exact terms of the UN resolution on Syria. The discussions will address the Chapter VII application and also the sanctions in case Syria violates the agreements, the source said. Concerning the UN experts' report on Chemical Weapons use on August 21 in Damascus, where as many as 1,500 died, the source said that France felt its position was bolstered by the report and it felt its position on the "exclusive responsibility" by the Syrian regime was strengthened. France, Britain and the US all say that the Syrian regime is the culprit in using chemical weapons in the conflict. Lastly, the diplomat told KUNA that France agreed with the position of the US Secretary-of-State John Kerry, who stated on Monday that Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad must be removed through the transitional, political process envisaged in the Geneva I talks which took place in June 2012.