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UN Security Council may approve observer mission deployment in Syria Friday: Russian UN envoy

12 April 2012 21:41 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin said here Thursday that the UN Security Council might adopt a resolution Friday on the deployment of an advance group of observer mission in SyriaÃ§ APA reports quoting Xinhua.

Churkin made the remarks after a close-door briefing by Kofi Annan, joint UN-Arab League envoy for Syria, to the 15-member council via video-link. "We are supportive of the deployment of the monitoring mission in Syria and that the advanced group of monitors can be deployed very shortly," Churkin told reporters.

"In fact we hope that even tomorrow we might adopt a Security Council resolution on the deployment of that advance group of monitors," said Churkin, who believed it is crucial for the monitors to be on the ground to make sure that any transgressions of the current state of the end of violence is going to be detected. "Everybody must refrain from any hint of provocation," he said.

Annan said in a statement issued Thursday morning that he is " encouraged" by reports that the cessation of hostilities in Syria "appears to be holding," urging all Syrian to seize opportunity to implement the agreed six-point peace plan.

"We do now have a cessation of violence in Syria," said Churkin. "We hope everybody needs to behave with maximum prudence.. . and we hope the six-point plan of Mr. Annan is going to be fully implemented."

Churkin called on those who have an influence on the parties to "exercise that influence in order for peace to continue to prevail in Syria and for political dialogue to start, and for Syria to finally come out of this crisis."

"We are concerned about the possibility of provocations, and about the appeals for massive demonstrations...In Syria now, we need to take advantage of the no-violence situation to build on that,"he said.

Annan had previously stated that once the Syrian government would complete the withdrawal of troops by April 10, all parties should move immediately to cease all forms of violence, so that a complete cessation is in place by April 12. The UN estimates that some 9,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed, and tens of thousands have been displaced since protests in Syria broke out in March last year.