China opposes forced regime change in Syria: envoy

• Published: 17/02/2012 at 12:32 AM             

Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhai Jun said Beijing opposed armed intervention and forced "regime change" in Syria, a day before to heading to Damascus to push for an end to the conflict there.

Masked members of the Free Syrian Army stand next to the rebel-adopted, pre-Baath party flag in a deserted street at the entrance to the north Syrian city of Binnish on February 15. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhai Jun said Beijing opposed armed intervention and forced "regime change" in Syria, a day before to heading to Damascus to push for an end to the conflict there.

China and Russia have faced a barrage of criticism for blocking a UN Security Council resolution condemning the bloody crackdown on protests in Syria, including from Arab nations with which Beijing normally has good ties.
"We urge the Syrian government and all of its political parties to immediately and fully end all acts of violence and quickly restore stability and normal social order," said Zhai, who will visit the Middle East country from February 17 to 18.
"China condemns all acts of violence against innocent civilians" and does not approve of armed intervention or forcing so-called 'regime change'," he was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua news agency.
Foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin told reporters Zhai would "exchange views with the Syrian government and parties concerned in Syria on the current... situation to push for a peaceful and proper resolution of the... crisis."
His announced visit comes just days after a Chinese diplomat met the head of the Arab League to discuss the crisis. Another envoy will also soon go to the Middle East.
Li Huaxin travelled to Egypt on Friday to meet with foreign ministry officials and held talks with Nabil el-Araby, head of the Arab League, on Monday to explain why Beijing vetoed the resolution.
Li, who was Beijing's ambassador to Syria until last year, will go to Saudi Arabia and Qatar to further lay out China's position on Syria, Liu said previously.
China's special envoy on the Middle East Wu Sike will also travel to Israel, the Palestinian territories and Jordan from February 19 to 23 to expand on Beijing's position on Syria.
China has repeatedly defended its decision to veto the UN Security Council resolution, saying it would not protect the regime of President Bashar al-Assad and that its priority was to prevent further violence.
Beijing said last week it had held talks with a key Syrian opposition group, the National Coordination Body for Democratic Change, which it said called for China "to play a bigger role" in resolving the Syrian crisis.
Liu said Thursday that Zhai would deliver a message to Syria that China "hopes for a peaceful and proper resolution" to the crisis and "the Chinese side will play a constructive role in mediation".
Thirteen countries voted for the UN Security Council resolution, which aimed to give strong backing to the Arab League's plan to end a deadly government crackdown on protesters.
More than 6,000 people have died in nearly a year of upheaval in Syria, as Assad's hardline regime seeks to snuff out a revolt that began with peaceful protests in March 2011 amid the Arab Spring.
Assad on Wednesday called a constitutional referendum for later this month that would effectively end nearly 50 years of single-party rule, which critics see as a move aimed at placating growing global outrage over the bloodshed.
The United States dismissed the call for a referendum as "laughable".
"Promises of reforms have usually been followed by an increase in brutality and have never been delivered upon by this regime since the beginning of peaceful demonstrations in Syria," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

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