UN-Arab League special envoy to Syria Annan to visit Turkey

Kofi Annan, the United Nations-Arab League special envoy to Syria, is expected to visit Turkey soon, Turkish newspaper Today's Zaman reported on its website Thursday. Annan, who was appointed as special envoy in February, told Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu via a phone conversation that he would like to visit Turkey as part of his tour of regional countries, the newspaper quoted foreign ministry officials as saying. The former UN chief wants to visit Turkey after he has completed his key talks in Damascus on Saturday, Turkish private news agency ANKA reported. Annan, who is in Cairo for talks with the Arab League and Egyptian officials, said on Thursday that he will urge the Syrian government and the opposition to halt violence and seek a political settlement after a year of conflict, according to Today' s Zaman. Turkey, once a close ally of Syria, has repeatedly called on Damascus to stop violence against civilians and imposed on Syria a series of sanctions including an arms embargo in a protest against its government's alleged crackdown on opposing forces. Earlier in Cairo, Kofi Annan urged an immediate end of violence in the country and stressed that the ultimate solution to the crisis lies in a political settlement. "The killing has to stop and we need to find a way of putting in their appropriate reforms and moving forward," said Annan after his talks with AL chief Nabil al-Arabi here in Cairo. "The situation in the country, as you all know, is extremely serious for the Syrian people and the region. I think we should not forget the possible impact of Syria on the region if there is any miscalculation," said Annan. The former UN chief said "no one is thinking very seriously of using force in the situation", noting that any further militarization will make the situation worse. He stressed the importance of diplomatic efforts in putting an end to the killing in Syria, calling for realistic proposals which can be implemented and achieve results Kofi Annan, the UN-League of Arab States Special Envoy for Syria arrived here earlier on Wednesday to discuss the crisis in Syria.