Qatar emir: UNSC fails to find peaceful solution to Syria, needs reform

Qatar's Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani called for hastening implementation of a reform of the Security Council, which he accused of being a "major obstacle" to dealing with international challenges, mainly the Syrian crisis. "We all know that the responsibility for failure to impose the political settlement we all prefer for Syria is due basically to the inability of the Security Council to take the required decision to stop the bloodshed ... From this perspective, the decision-making process at the Security Council has become in need of change since it lacks fairness and objectivity," he told nations gathered at the 68th General Assembly session. "It is obviously impossible to take any decision without the support of the majority of the permanent member states, but taking a decision should not be monopolized for a long period by one or two states," he added. "It (Security Council) has become a major obstacle to preserving international peace and security and to the punishment of war criminals and perpetrators of crimes against humanity," added the Qatari leader, who called for the Security Council to allow "fair representation" of the international community within its boundaries and to be "expressive of the democracy in the international multilateral work." Commenting on the deal reached between the US and Russia which will put Syria's chemical stockpile under international control, he said that this decision was not taken according to the will of the Syrian people. "The Syrian people have not risen up for putting the Syrian chemical weapons under the international supervision but for getting rid of despotism and corruption and to end the injustice it has been facing. The deal demands Damascus to submit a comprehensive list of its chemical weapons stockpile within one week, with international inspectors allowed in to the country by no later than November. It also requires chemical production facilities and equipment to be destroyed by November, with all of the country's chemical weapons totally eliminated by mid-2014. Furthermore, Sheikh Tamim criticised pre-Arab Spring politicians for their failure to avoid "expected problems," and the region's people of opting for revolutions as opposed to "gradual reform." However, he conceded that "there are cases in our region and in other regions of the world, which we know very well, where there was no way for change through reform. "The transformation to a just rule and meeting the demands of the people in all states of the world has never been an easy path but one full of sacrifices. It has not been easy to go through it without patience and determination," he concluded.