US, regional diplomats urge respect for minorities in Syria after Assad
World
US, regional diplomats urge respect for minorities in Syria after Assad
AQABA, Jordan (Reuters) - Top diplomats from the United States, Turkey, the European Union and Arab nations have agreed that a new government in Syria should respect minority rights, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Saturday following talks in Jordan and direct contacts with the rebels who ousted President Bashar al-Assad.
The meetings occurred as regional and global powers scramble for influence over whatever government replaces Assad, forced to flee a week ago.
Blinken said at a news conference that the group had agreed a joint communique that also calls for an inclusive and representative government that respects the rights of minorities and does not offer "a base for terrorist groups".
"Today's agreement sends a unified message to the new interim authority and parties in Syria on the principles crucial to securing much needed support and recognition," Blinken said.
Blinken also said US officials had now had "direct contact" with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and had urged them and other rebel groups to assist with locating US journalist Austin Tice, who was detained in Syria in 2012. The US has also shared with actors in Syria what it wants to see from the country's transition, he added.
Syria's neighbour Jordan was hosting Saturday's gathering in Aqaba. Russia and Iran, who were Assad's key supporters, were not invited.
Blinken, UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pederson and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, Fidan and foreign ministers from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar met around a circular table at a Jordanian government guesthouse. There was no Syrian representative at the table.
The Arab diplomats earlier met separately and issued a statement calling for a peaceful and inclusive political transition that leads towards elections and a new constitution.
