France's President Francois Hollande (2nd R), the new Syrian National Coalition head Mouaz Al-Khatib (R), France's Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius (L) and the new Syrian ambassador to France Monzer Makhous (2nd L) shake hands after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Saturday. – Reuters PARIS – Syria's new opposition bloc has appointed an envoy to France, French President Francois Hollande said after meeting the head of the Syrian National Coalition Saturday. France is one of the harshest critics of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, whose military crackdown on a 20-month-old uprising against his rule has killed 38,000 people, according to activists, and risks sucking in neighboring countries. A French diplomatic source said the envoy would act as a representative of the coalition, becoming ambassador once a provisional government is established and recognized internationally. Hollande invited coalition head Mouaz Al-Khatib for talks in Paris after France became the first European power to recognize the group as the sole representative of the Syrian people. Al-Khatib said the role of ambassador would be taken on by Monzir Makhous, part of the delegation meeting with Hollande at the Elysee Palace. Makhous' offices would be in a location separate from the existing Syrian embassy, which “doesn't belong to France,” Hollande added. While the Syrian Embassy in Paris remains open, there is no longer a recognized ambassador in place. Hollande said he expected many countries would follow France's lead by recognizing the Syrian National Coalition, which came out of a deal struck in Qatar on Nov. 11 bringing together fragmented Syrian opposition groups. The French president said Tuesday that France recognized the coalition as the future government of a democratic Syria. He added that the question of arming the rebels would be considered once a transitional government was formed. Al-Khatib this week called on European states to grant political recognition to the coalition and give it financial support as it seeks to topple Assad. Other Western countries are holding back, uneasy over the presence of radical Islamists among the rebels and accusations by UN investigators of war crimes committed by rebel fighters. Britain said Friday that while it would like to recognize the coalition formally “at an early stage,” it needed first to have more assurances on its plans. British Foreign Secretary William Hague urged the coalition to set out a credible plan for political transition and widen its support among the Syrian people. Hollande said Saturday that Al-Khatib had demonstrated there was a will to unite all parts of the Syrian people and that there would be an integrated military command structure to “liberate” the country. – Agencies
