Standing by Syrian opposition

Russia and Syria's veto of a United Nations Security Council resolution on Syria only seems to have strengthened Western nations' resolve to support Syria's opposition and bring about an end to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said in an interview on French television that Europe would tighten the screws on Assad.

"Europe will again harden sanctions imposed on the Syrian regime. We will try to increase this international pressure and there will come a time when the regime will have to realize that it is completely isolated and cannot continue," he said.

Juppe also pledged French assistance to the Syrian opposition, saying his country would help opposition forces "structure and organize themselves."

Referring to Russia and China's veto, Juppe said it was a "moral stain" on the United Nations.

United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton backed a developing idea to create an international coalition outside the UN to support "the Syrian people's right to a better future."

"Faced with a neutered Security Council, we have to redouble our efforts outside of the United Nations," Clinton said on a trip to the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, on Sunday.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimates that as many as 56 people were killed on Sunday alone in Syria, capping one of the deadliest weekends in Syria since the uprising against Assad began 11 months ago. The UN estimates 6,000 people have been killed in the violence.

mz/gw (Reuters, AFP)