Davutoğlu repeats call on Syria to end violence from Moscow

“We are making the same call on Syria from Moscow,” Davutoğlu said, hinting at the significance of repeating the request while in Russia, adding, “Our call is for the violence against people to stop, immediate implementation of reforms and the construction of a peaceful future for all groups in Syria.”

Davutoğlu's Moscow visit comes on the occasion of the second meeting of the Common Strategic Planning Group, a body established under the High Level Cooperation Council of Turkey and Russia that was founded in 2010 to advance cooperation between the two countries. The visit also comes after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the country would stonewall any UN sanctions on Syria and will instead push for the start of talks between the Assad regime and the Syrian opposition. Lavrov said on Wednesday that his country would block any attempts at gaining UN approval for sanctions against Syria, saying that such a move would be "unfair and counterproductive," the AP reported. In a joint press conference with Davutoğlu, Lavrov stated that Russia was “open to productive proposals,” but stressed that an armed intervention into Syria was not what Moscow had in mind.

Sanctions proposed by the UN Security Council have been blocked by opposition from Russia and China and the UN has not been able to agree on measures for Syria despite a year of ongoing violence. For decades, Russia has supplied Syria with arms, missiles and heavy weaponry.

Meanwhile, Ankara asked the UN on Tuesday to support an Arab League roadmap regarding the Syrian unrest and to reaffirm its commitment “to do its part” in supporting the people of Syria. “The international community, with no time to lose, should deliver a message to the people of Syria that they are not alone [in their fight] against the policy of oppression and violence they have been facing,” Turkey's Foreign Ministry stated in a written announcement.

While the ministry hailed the Arab League decision that came on Sunday urging Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down and leave his seat to a deputy to allow for free elections, it also noted that Ankara was now “all the more concerned” following Assad’s refusal to follow the Arab League advice.

“For all these reasons, we find very apt the Arab League Ministerial Council’s decision to increase contact with the UN secretary-general, other regional states and UN Security Council member states,” the statement continued, after expressing that Turkey expected all international actors to “speak in one voice” in the face of developments in Syria, which have reached worrying levels, threatening regional peace and security.

“The Arab League call on the UN Security Council to support the roadmap adopted on Jan. 22 should not be left unanswered,” it further added, noting that Turkey was expecting the international community to “reaffirm its determination to comply with its responsibilities” to the people of Syria.

On Sunday, the Arab League laid out a roadmap that envisioned the departure of Assad from Syrian politics, prepared in line with reports from a 200-strong monitoring group in Syria. Assad responded by lashing out at the roadmap, saying it was an interference in the country’s internal politics and amounted to the support of “terrorists” in Syria. When its monitoring initiative advised that Syrian bloodshed was still ongoing, the Arab League decided to increase contact with the UN and urged the international body to increase its efforts to help Syrians.

However, Gulf Arab states withdrew their observers from Syria on Tuesday after Syria rejected the Arab League peace plan and the group’s chief called for UN help in ending Syria’s bloody upheaval.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem accused the league of plotting to engineer a foreign intervention in the crisis. “Definitely the solution for Syria is not the solution suggested by the Arab League, which we have rejected. They have abandoned their role as the Arab League and we no longer want Arab solutions to the crisis,” Muallem said.

“Heading to the [UN] Security Council will be the third stage in their plan, and the only thing left is the last step of internationalization,” he told a news conference in Damascus, adding: “They can head to New York or to the moon. So long as we are not paying for their tickets, it is none of our concern.”

Turkey’s statement said it has attached importance to the efforts of the Arab League to end violence in Syria, where the crisis threatens stability not only in the country but also in the entire region. It added that the Arab League’s decision, made following the consideration of reports by Arab monitors, indicates that the Syrian regime is not serious about living up to its commitments.