UK FM: Syrian opposition’s transition plan can be put into effect

The UK Foreign Minister Boris Johnson said on Wednesday evening that with common sense and flexibility, the proposed Syrian opposition’s transition plan can be put into effect, Reuters reported .

Johnson also rued Assad brutal war, saying that it "shames humanity". He also insisted international efforts be made to allow an opposition peace plan to proceed and end the bloody conflict.

Johnson described the High Negotiations Committee (HNC) as representing "a future for Syria that goes beyond the Assad regime".

The statement came after Johnson said that Bashar Assad must be ousted as part of any peace deal in Syria as Assad’s “killing machine and his barrel bombs had caused the 400,000 deaths estimated by the United Nations in the country. 

Johnson further made the comments in a newspaper column published ahead of meeting in London on Wednesday of the HNC, which represents opposition groups in Syria. 

He wrote in The Times: “There will be people meeting in London who have direct experience of running Syria but who utterly reject the Assad-style police state. They want to create a new country in which there are checks and balances in government and in which the rights of women and minorities are respected.

“Their ambition is to ensure a safe space, free from terror, to which migrants can return. Above all, the HNC does not represent the victory of one sectarian group over another or the transfer of power from one faction in Syria to another.” 

On his side, Dr. Riyad Hijab, the general coordinator of the HNC, said on Wednesday in a press statement to Reuters that the HNC rejects any expected agreement between Russia and the United States concerning Syria’s fate if the agreement was different from its vision.  

Hijab reiterated the same message in a joint press conference held with Boris Johnson on Wednesday evening saying the world needs to support transition in Syria without Assad, and it is high time for transition from Assad’s barbaric dictatorship to a democratic Syria.

Hijab presented the vision of the Syrian opposition which consists of three phases. He pointed out that this phase requires adhering to a truce in Syria.

The second phase contains forming a transitional governing body with full executive powers. The body, according to Hijab, shall form a Constitutional Court, a Reconstruction Committee, and a National Reconciliation Committee. It should be tasked with representing Syria in the international forums. It should also handle combating terrorism, as well, according to Hijab.

Orient Net published on Wednesday an exclusive copy of the Syrian opposition’s vision.