Washington: Assad Still Must Go
Tuesday October 27, 2015
The apparent shift was in response to a reporter who pointed out that Assad is not opposed by the entire population of Syria:
...the Assad regime definitely represents a certain constituency in Syria. The minorities, Christians, even a portion of the Sunnis look at the Syrian regime as their representative, in particular at Bashar al-Assad. Why should Bashar al-Assad be complex nixed out of the process, considering that he controls the larger portion on the ground, proudly asserting themselves as the major power in that conflict on the ground? Why should Assad be nixed out of the process?State Spokesman Kirby replied:
Nobody said that there wouldn’t be a role for Assad or for the institution of his – institutions of his government in the transition.It appears to be a slight step back from the previous position that no talks could be held on Syria's future until Assad is out of power. In fact, however, this "shift" is more cosmetic than substantive, as Kirby reiterated that, "nothing’s changed about our position on Bashar al-Assad."
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