The UN Security Council Approves Resolution on Syrian Peace Process

On Friday, December 18, fifteen member countries of the United Nations Security Council unanimously approved a resolution on the Syrian peace process. According to the Associated Press, the approval of this resolution is an unprecedented sign of global power agreement on the issue of the war in Syria. The Syrian conflict has so far left hundreds of thousands dead and millions displaced. According to CNN, this resolution calls for the formation of a 'legitimate, inclusive, and non-sectarian government' within the next six months and states that 'free and fair elections will be held within 18 months based on a new constitution.' Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has stated that the process of achieving peace in Syria will be difficult. Kerry emphasized, 'We are not under any illusions about the obstacles ahead.' According to the Associated Press, the Security Council resolution requests Ban Ki-moon, the UN Secretary-General, to facilitate negotiations between representatives of the opposition groups to Bashar al-Assad's government and Syrian officials for the formation of a transitional government by early January 2016. The resolution also specifies that efforts to establish a ceasefire will commence during peace negotiations between representatives of the Syrian government and the opposition. The UN Secretary-General will also provide a report on his oversight of developments in Syria in the first month following this resolution. However, the Security Council resolution specifies that the ceasefire will not include groups that are declared terrorist. This report adds that given this part of the resolution, airstrikes by the U.S.-led coalition and Russia against the positions of the Islamic State group in Syria will continue despite a potential ceasefire. In this context, discussions were held among the foreign ministers of 20 countries in New York on Friday regarding the designation of terrorist groups in Syria. Meanwhile, Jordan has presented a list of groups that should be included in the list of terrorist organizations. However, it is reported that there is no consensus on this matter. The mention of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the 'terrorist list' and the reaction of Zarif. Jordan included the name of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist group in the list presented at the New York meeting on Syria, which provoked a strong reaction from Iran's Foreign Minister. According to the Iranian news agency, the list presented by the Jordanian Foreign Minister to this meeting included the names of 157 active groups in Syria, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. According to this report, Mohammad Javad Zarif expressed 'strong reaction' to Jordan's action in this meeting and showed 'surprise and astonishment.' According to Mehr News Agency, the Jordanian Foreign Minister responded to Zarif's protest by saying, 'We have asked all parties involved in the Syrian issue to provide the names of groups they believe are engaging in terrorist actions in Syria, and the name of the Guard was provided not by Jordan but by one of the countries.'