The United States and France returned their envoys to Syria on Tuesday, urging Damascus to protect them.
The United States and France returned their envoys to Syria on Tuesday, urging Damascus to protect them.
US Ambassador Robert Ford and French Ambassador Eric Chevallier had left Syria more than month ago.
We believe his presence in the country is among the most effective ways to send the message that the United States stands with the people of Syria," US State Department spokesman Mark Toner said as the two envoys flew back in.
Ford will seek to provide "reliable reporting on the situation on the ground" and engage "with the full spectrum of Syrian society on how to end the bloodshed and achieve a peaceful political transition," Toner said.
White House spokesman Jay Carney demanded that Syria uphold international obligations to protect foreign diplomats and allow US officers "to conduct their work f
ree of intimidation or obstacles."
In Paris, deputy foreign ministry spokesman Romain Nadal said that the concerns that led to Chevallier's recall have not gone away but that "his work on the ground in Syria is important."
"France is more than ever at the side of the Syrian people," Nadal told AFP.
