Ban Wants Council to 'Bear Quick Fruit' on Syria

U.N. leader Ban Ki-moon urged the Security Council to take action on Tuesday to "bear quick fruit" to end the crackdown on dissent in Syria, where more than 5,400 people have been killed.

"I hope the U.N. Security Council meeting will bear quick fruit so that the council can meet the expectations of the international community," Ban told a news conference with Jordan's Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh in Amman.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is leading a Western charge pressing Russia to back Security Council action on Syria.

But Moscow, which has veto power in the council, has objected to a resolution introduced by Morocco under which Syrian President Bashar Assad would accept a ceasefire and hand over power to a deputy ahead of talks.

The council is due to meet later on Tuesday to discuss the draft resolution.

Ban called on it to act "in a coherent manner reflecting the wishes of the international community and... wishes and aspirations of the Syrian people, who have been yearning for freedom."

He described the violence in Syria as "a threat to regional and international peace."

"There have been serious violations of human rights," Ban said, adding it is not too late for Assad to "take decisive and bold measures."

The 15-nation Security Council has been unable to agree on a resolution on Syria's repression of the anti-government protests that erupted last March.

Russia and China used their veto powers as permanent members of the council to block a European resolution in October.

Russia has since proposed its own resolution, but Western countries have said it is unbalanced.

The U.N. secretary general, who was at the World Economic Forum in Davos, had urged the council on Friday to act.

"We have to seize this moment; we have to help these people. They have been oppressed for so long.

"Now they have come out, women and young people, they are yearning for these aspirations. That's why I have been urging leaders to listen very sincerely and carefully to their aspirations," he added.

"I'm going to continue to do that. I'm encouraging that when it comes to the Syrian situation."