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Forging Peace in Syria: Great opportunities, grave risks

Following the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime on Sunday, Syria has entered a period of profound uncertainty, and the UN will have a vital role in ensuring an orderly transition to renewed, stable institutions, continuing efforts to bring together different groups and factions which began at the outset of war in 2011.

As the fighting intensified, the UN never stopped working behind the scenes to bring about a political solution that would deliver dignity, freedom and justice for the Syrian people.

Here are some of the key developments where the UN has played a significant role towards a just peace in Syria.

2012: Peace efforts begin in earnest
Less than a year after pro-democracy protests in March 2011 (which swept much of the Arab world in what was widely referred to as the First Arab Spring) led to a violent crackdown by the Syrian authorities, former Secretary-General Kofi Annan (1997-2006) was given the task of shepherding efforts to resolve the conflict, in his capacity as Joint Special Envoy for the UN and the League of Arab States for Syria.

Mr. Annan put together a six-point plan, calling for an end to violence, access for humanitarian agencies, the release of detainees, the start of inclusive political dialogue, and unrestricted access for the international media.

The plan was endorsed by the Security Council in April 2012, with the adoption of resolutions (2042 and 2043) leading to the establishment of the short-lived UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS), which came to an end in August of that year, as the civil conflict intensified.

2012 also saw the publication of the Geneva Communiqué, the outcome of a meeting of the Action Group for Syria, which included several Middle East States and the five permanent Security Council members.

The document – endorsed by both the General Assembly and the Security Council – built on Mr. Annan’s peace plan and has guided UN mediation efforts towards a political solution ever since.