International diplomacy's 11th hour

International tensions over Syria have risen again. The meeting of minds at the ministerial meeting in Geneva at the end of June has turned out to be incomplete, as both Western and Russian expectations of a fundamental shift in the other's stance have proven to be wishful thinking. The apparent concessions the United States made to Russia in the language of the final communiqu in Geneva; and Russia's stated willingness not to sign any new arms contracts with Damascus were only tactical moves.

The Syrian opposition leaders who traveled to Moscow in early July immediately voiced their disappointment that Russia was not ready to turn against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. Russia then tabled a draft resolution at the UN Security Council that failed to satisfy the US and its allies, and the US-proposed counter-draft, complete with new condemnations and sanctions against the Syrian authorities, was criticized by Moscow and Beijing for being unbalanced. A new round of international controversy makes the prospect of a full-scale civil war in Syria ever more likely.

This argument has been borne out by developments on the ground in Syria. The reports of a new massacre of innocent civilians, this time in the village of Treimsa, are particularly disturbing. Like the previous one at Houla, this despicable act of violence has been blamed on forces loyal to Assad, but no independent confirmation has been possible. The bodies, wrapped in blankets and shown on television around the world, have mobilized popular support in the West for some resolute action to stop the bloodshed.