EU welcomes UN Syria statement

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton has welcomed the UN Security Council’s statement on the Syria peace plan by its special envoy Kofi Annan. "I welcome the adoption by the UN Security Council of a Presidential Statement on Syria. I have emphasized from the beginning my full support for the Joint Envoy of the UN and the League of Arab States to Syria, Kofi Annan, and for his plan,” she said. The statement reinforces Annan’s efforts to “stop the violence and facilitate a peaceful Syrian-led and inclusive solution in Syria,” she said. Ashton urged the Syrian authorities to fully cooperate with Kofi Annan and his mission. The UNSC on Wednesday adopted Annan’s six-point plan to end the bloody conflict in Syria, threatening unspecified "further steps" if it failed to comply. The plan calls for a ceasefire and demands swift access for aid agencies. More than 8,000 people have been killed in Syria since protests against President Bashar al-Assad began a year ago.