Syria's Assad: I'll Comply With UN Resolution

Says he's open to talks with opposition if they give up their arms
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 29, 2013 11:15 AM CDT
Syria's Assad: I'll Comply With UN Resolution
President Bashar Assad gestures as he speaks during an interview with Italy's RAI News 24 TV, at the presidential palace in Damascus, Syria, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2013.   (Anonymous)

Bashar al-Assad is vowing to stand by the terms of the United Nations' resolution last week to destroy Syria's chemical weapons, reports the AP. "Of course we have to comply," he told Italian television in an interview today. "This is our history to comply with every treaty we sign. According to every chapter in the agreement, we don't have any reservation. That's why we decided to join the agreement."

He also indicated a willingness to talk to opposition members, "if they give in their arms we'll be ready to discuss with them anything like with any other citizen." But he drew the line at armed rebels, saying, "We cannot negotiate with the people who ask for foreign intervention and military intervention in Syria." (More Bashar al-Assad stories.)

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