text: FILE - In this June 30, 2012 file photo, Kofi Annan, Joint Special Envoy of the United Nations and the Arab League for Syria, center, speaks with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, left, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov before the start of the Action Group on Syria meeting at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. Annan said Thursday, Aug. 2, 2012 he will step down from his high-profile role as special envoy for Syria at the end of the month, delivering blistering criticism of world powers failure to unite over the countrys escalating violence. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, Pool, File) / AP