Europe

Europe

EU welcomes UN condemnation on Syria

05 August 2011 00:12 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The European Union (EU) on Thursday welcomed a UN Security Council statement condemning Syrian authorities’ use of force against civilians, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

"I welcome the UN Security Council Presidential Statement," said EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton in a statement, "It states unequivocally that the Syrian regime is responsible for widespread violations of human rights and the use of force against civilians."

Ashton urged Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to listen to the international community, and stop the violence against his people.

"The legitimate demands of the Syrian people must be met," Ashton said, "An irreversible transition to democracy must be started now."

Ashton believed the latest reforms announced by Assad are "in principle a step in the right direction, but only if they are genuinely put into effect."

The EU extended sanctions against Syria on Monday, imposing asset freezes and travel bans on five more Syrian officials "in view of the gravity of the situation" in that country. Up to now, there are 35 individuals including President Assad, on the EU sanction list.