WASHINGTON - A senior State Department official said Friday the U.S. is "cautiously optimistic" of strong support for a new U.N. Security Council resolution condemning the violence in Syria and calling for a political transition in the country.
The official said Friday a draft resolution proposed late Thursday by Morocco would likely clear a security council vote later Friday or over the weekend, as it appeared to meet Russian concerns. The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the diplomacy.
The official said Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton would speak with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov by phone from her plane as she flies to Europe on Friday.
"From our perspective, this resolution fully supports the Syrian people and the Arab League," the official said.
The new draft repeats all the conditions the Arab League had set and fully supports its call for a Syrian-led political transition, the official said. It also sets a deadline of 21 days to make progress on the resolution; if there is no progress, the issue returns to the Security Council.
While the draft doesn't contain any new sanctions, it gives the council an opportunity to revisit the situation, the official said. The official said the resolution should draw a strong show of support from the council's members.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, who has strongly advocated action by the Security Council, said in Munich that "it is necessary for those who are still hesitating to understand that this hesitation can not be imposed on the people who are suffering from repression and violence in Syria."
"The international community has to act and find common language," he said ahead of a security conference that both Clinton and Lavrov are due to attend.
