Washington (dpa) – The US government on Wednesday reinforced its support of a political solution to the crisis in Syria, saying it was working with its international partners to develop a plan that would get food and medicine to communities inside the strife-torn country. “We believe that political solution is the right way to go,” said White House spokesman Jay Carney. He added: “We never rule anything out in a situation like this.” Syrian government forces mounted wide-scale attacks on Wednesday in the country's most restive provinces, leaving at least 73 people dead, according to opposition activists. The dead included 18 premature newborns who died in a hospital due to the electricity cuts in Homs, activists said. The Arab League and Turkey are planning to propose a new initiative on Syria after Russia and China blocked an effort in the UN Security Council to adopt the league's plans to defuse the situation, according to Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. Davutoglu is to meet with US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton early next week in Washington to discuss proposals. US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland indicated discussions were underway about forming a group – she called it “friends of a democratic Syria” – that would support the Arab League plan calling for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down. Asked if she thought Russia and China could join the group, she said: “I think you know that we have not been in the same place on what is to be done.” She noted that the State Department in the past has asked the Pentagon to help deliver humanitarian supplies, but did not elaborate on how aid would be moved. European Union foreign ministers are expected to approve a new round of sanctions against Syria in two weeks' time, targeting its central bank and exports of phosphates and gold, a diplomat in Brussels said. The United States closed its embassy in Damascus and evacuated Ambassador Robert Ford and all embassy personnel this week because of concerns over the worsening security situation. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/xG3Ln Tags: Assad, Damascus, Obama, Washington Section: Latest News, North America, Syria
