"Despite the United Nations Security Council’s belated endorsement of UN Special Envoy Kofi Annan’s peacemaking mission in Syria, confidence that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will cooperate in any serious or sustained way remains low, and calls for external military intervention continue... With all military options appearing to be counterproductive, the only chance of halting Syria’s descent into total chaos is Annan’s political mediation." (Quoted from article)