Shaaban: The West has always been mistaken towards Syria

DAMASCUS – Presidential Political and Media Advisor Dr. Bouthaina Shaaban stressed that the West has always been mistaken towards Syria, adding it is time Western countries reconsidered their positions.

Shaaban added in an interview with BBC News Channel and reported by SANA, that ISIS is not the only terrorist organization in Syria, but also Jabhat al-Nusra which is designated a terrorist organization by the UN Security Council.

 “It is important not only to defeat ISIS but also to defeat every armed terrorist who is committing massacres against the Syrian people,” she added.

Syria has repeatedly declared that it welcomes any party which wants to join it in combating terrorism in cooperation with the Syrian army and the Syrian government. “This is what we called for when the United States announced that they formed a coalition to fight terrorism and we said that we would like a broader alliance but in cooperation with Syria and the Syrian army,” Shaaban said.

Shaaban explained that in light of arming and funding large numbers of terrorists coming from more than 80 countries to Syria, it was normal for the Syrian government to ask the Russian government for help in combating terrorism.

Shaaban stressed that the West does not care about civilians and if they truly do, they would have listened to what the Syrian government said since 2011when the terrorists began to destroy schools and hospitals and to kill the Syrian people.

Shaaban pointed out that investigations refuted all Western allegations about the Syrian government using chemicals and chlorine which is proven to have been used by terrorist organizations, emphasizing that the ”explosive barrels” is a phrase invented by the West and is being used only to justify the wrong positions which were taken since the beginning of the crisis.

Shaaban also stressed that Syria’s position is clear that the Syrian people have the right to decide the future of the country, adding that the battle of the Syrian people and army is against terrorism.

She pointed out that the crisis is neither related to President Bashar al-Assad nor to the Syrian government, but to Syria and its heritage and aims at obliterating its identity and undermining its security and stability.

Asked about the US designation of part of the Syrian opposition as “moderate”, she described the term as bizarre and unacceptable, adding that the Syrian government would welcome any political opposition that does not use weapons and massacres as a means for political gains.