HELPLESS: A Syrian kisses a copy of the Koran found in the rubble of a mosque in Syria's northern city of Aleppo after it was hit by a tank shell on October 28 (XINHUA/AFP)

UN-Arab League joint special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi's stance on resolving the Syrian crisis through political resolution is firm, in spite of a failed truce during Muslims' four-day Feast of Sacrifice. Shortly after repeated visits of Syria and its neighbor countries, the special envoy turned to China for more help in addressing the crisis through peaceful resolution. Consistent with its unrelenting position and previous mediation efforts, China this time put forward a new four-point proposal to facilitate the political settlement of the Syrian conflict.

Observers said the new proposal is more detailed and practical than the six-point proposal China released in March this year. With the momentum of military interference from outside having been contained at present, more countries have begun to steer Syria back on the road of political resolution. However, the attitude of the West regarding the current Syrian administration plays a major role in the resolution of the crisis.

"China's new proposal is more detailed and practical than its previous six-point proposal," said Professor Xue Qingguo, an expert on Arab studies with the Beijing Foreign Studies University.

An Huihou, a senior visiting researcher with the China Institute of International Studies, said: "At a time when the Syrian situation has entered an impasse, China's new proposal not only shows its concern on the issue, but also gives strong support to Brahimi."

New proposals

Brahimi visited China for the first time as the international mediator on Syria since replacing former UN chief Kofi Annan on September 1. The new joint mediator is going to submit new proposals on political dialogue between the Syrian Government and opposition forces to the UN Security Council. Before his trip to China, Brahimi had visited Syria, Egypt, Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Russia.

Observers commented that Brahimi's trip to China was aimed at both making clear China's stance on the Syrian issue as well as asking for support.

An said China's status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council gives it an important role in the political resolution of the Syrian crisis.

"Brahimi's trip shows that he believes China has weight on the issue. The new proposals also highlight the extent to which the attention China has paid to the peaceful resolution of the Syrian issue," said Hua Liming, former Chinese Ambassador to Iran.

China's new four-point proposal was made during talks between Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and Brahimi, which called for a political resolution to the Syrian conflict and urged all parties in Syria to cease fire and begin a political transition at an early date.