DAMASCUS: International envoy Kofi Annan has arrived in Syria after admitting that his peace plan has so far failed to end nearly 16 months of carnage, as scores more die in the violence-wracked country.
"The Joint Special Envoy for Syria, Kofi Annan, arrived in Damascus late Sunday for talks with President Bashar Al-Assad," his spokesman Ahmad Fawzi said of Annan's third trip to Syria since the outbreak of the conflict.
Earlier, Syrian foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi had told AFP Annan would hold talks on his six-point plan for peace with the Syrian leadership.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned on Sunday that time is running out to save Syria from a "catastrophic assault," and as 99 more people were reportedly killed across the country, most of them civilians.
Annan himself has said his UN-backed mission has so far failed to halt the bloodshed, while stressing that Russia and Iran must not be sidelined from peace efforts.
"Russia wields influence but I am not sure that the events will be determined by Russia alone... Iran is an actor. It has to be part of the solution. It has influence and we cannot ignore it," Annan told France's Le Monde daily.
He also expressed irritation that while Moscow and Iran are mentioned by some as stumbling blocks to peace, "little is said about other countries which send arms, money, and have a presence on the ground."
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has accused the United States and its allies of opposing Assad's regime with the goal of dominating the Middle East and propping up Israel.
Iran's deputy foreign minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said on Sunday in Jordan that any attack on Syria would be "stupid" and "catastrophic."
Syria's state news agency SANA reported that the country's navy staged live fire exercises to "simulate the scenario of repelling a sudden attack from the sea."
Earlier, Clinton acknowledged in Tokyo that efforts led by Annan to get Assad's regime to halt its crackdown were proving difficult.
"The sooner there can be an end to the violence and a begetting of a political transition process, not only will fewer people die, but there's a chance to save the Syrian state from a catastrophic assault that would be dangerous not only to the country, but the region," she told reporters.
"It should be abundantly clear to those who support the Assad regime their days are numbered."
Clinton was speaking after talks in Paris on Friday where countries pledged to increase pressure on Assad to step down by seeking a tough UN resolution backed by a threat of sanctions.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, also speaking in Tokyo, renewed his call on the Security Council for collective action to pressure Syria to stop the violence.
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