Syria envoy Lakhdar Brahimi says crisis worsening, threatening regional stability (VIDEO)

GlobalPost

The UN-Arab League envoy to Syria on Monday told the UN Security Council and reporters a truth that he believes will "face no disagreement anywhere": the conflict in Syria is dire and getting worse.

Brahimi then voiced a second point unlikely to meet with argument: the security of the region is seriously threatened by the crisis in Syria, whose neighbors include Turkey, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon. Those countries have contended with border instability and great influxes of refugees, particularly as the 18-month-old conflict has escalated in recent months. Iran has also become a potent concern as the crisis in Syria has escalated.

More from GlobalPost: Syrian conflict: a proxy war against Iran?

Brahimi, a veteran diplomat with long experience in conflict-torn countries, said himself that he is not entirely sure how to bring an end to the violence.

There is "no prospect for today or tomorrow to move forward," he said on Monday, according to BBC News.

However, Brahimi did sound a more hopeful note, saying in spite of current intractability, "I think that we will find an opening in the not too distant future."

An anonymous diplomat who attended the briefing told the Associated Press that Brahimi seems to feel that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is seeking to paint the uprising in Syria as instigated by foreign countries, rather than the result of popular discontent with his rule.

Brahimi's comments came as meetings were underway for the UN General Assembly, which began its annual gathering in New York City on Monday.

More from GlobalPost: UN General Assembly has full plate ahead of meeting

GlobalPost's Tracey Shelton tells a wrenching story of doctors trying to save lives in Syria in the video below.

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