BAGHDAD — Iraq’s top diplomat said Monday that Arab leaders meeting in Baghdad this week are unlikely to demand the resignation of Syrian President Bashar Assad, and opposition forces there need to agree on a single strategy for ending the crisis.
On the eve of an Arab League summit in Baghdad, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said leaders will likely agree on a “doable” solution to end the year-long bloody conflict in Syria. He said it will be in line with earlier League proposals for Assad to peacefully transfer power to his vice president until open elections can be held.
The League has called for an immediate cease-fire and humanitarian assistance to be allowed into the combat zones.
“It’s up to the Syrian people to determine their own future,” Zebari told reporters Monday. “It’s not up to other countries to dictate to the Syrians what kind of leaders they have or don’t have. I don’t think there will be a call on Bashar to step aside.”
He said opposition leaders are welcome to come to Baghdad after the three-day summit ends Thursday to discuss possible proposals. Iraq will chair the League for one year after the summit closes.
The mounting crisis in Syria will be a top priority at the summit, during which Iraq’s leaders will try to prove that it has rejoined the Sunni-dominated Arab world after years of war, sanctions and U.S. occupation.
Iraqi state TV said ambassadors from Saudi Arabia and Bahrain — two kingdoms that have long been hostile to Iraq — arrived in Baghdad on Monday. Their appearance at the summit marked a sort of watershed event for Iraq, which until recently did not have normal diplomatic relations with either nation.
