China opposes "forced regime change" in Syria-Xinhua
Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:03 GMT
(Adds quotes, details)
BEIJING, Feb 1 (Reuters) - China opposes the use of force to resolve the crisis in Syria, where escalating violence has killed thousands of civilians, because it violates basic norms "guiding international relations", state news agency Xinhua said on Tuesday.
Arab and Western states urged the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday at act swiftly on a resolution calling for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step aside.
The United States strongly backed the call by the Arab League and Qatar for "rapid and decisive action", which came as Assad's government forces reasserted control of Damascus suburbs after beating back rebels at the gates of the capital.
"China is firmly opposed to the use of force to solve the Syrian problem and resolutely opposes pushing for forced regime change in Syria, as it violates the United Nations Charter and the basic norms guiding the practice of international relations," Xinhua quoted Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Li Baodong as saying to the Security Council.
The brief news report from Xinhua did not give other details.
China, along with Russia, has resisted a Western push for a Security Council resolution condemning the Syrian government's 10-month crackdown on pro-reform protests that has resulted in the deaths of more than 5,000 civilians.
China and Russia have prevented the Security Council from approving any military intervention in Syria and vetoed a Western-backed resolution against Assad's government.
Beijing, which generally avoids taking action in the domestic affairs of other nations, has played a low-key role in the turmoil that has swept the Middle East and North Africa.
But it has also moved swiftly to normalise ties with governments that have been overthrown by popular revolts, such as in Libya.
Clinton told the Security Council on Tuesday the rest of the world faced a choice to "stand with the people of Syria and the region or become complicit in the continuing violence there".
"The evidence is clear that Assad's forces are initiating nearly all the attacks that kill civilians, but as more citizens take up arms to resist the regime's brutality, violence is increasingly likely to spiral out of control," she said. (Reporting by Sui-Lee Wee; Editing by Paul Tait)
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