Al-Jaafari: Holding presidential elections on time is a message to Syria’s enemies that it will not be subject to any pressure or blackmail

Damascus (ST): Deputy Foreign and Expatriates Minister Dr. Bashar al-Jaafari stressed that the presidential elections are a sovereign Syrian affair and no country has the right to interfere in it, stressing that holding them on time is a clear message to Syria’s enemies that it will not be subject to any pressure or blackmail.

In an interview with the Iranian Tasnim News Agency today, Jaafari indicated that the enemy’s attempts to disrupt the presidential elections will not be able to undermine Syria’s independent decision and will not affect the faith and determination of its people in exercising their constitutional right and their national duty.

Al-Jaafari noted that Syria’s friends have stood by its side in its war on terror over the past ten years, which was funded and supported by hostile countries and brought it from all over the world to implement their plans and plots to undermine Syria’s national options and weaken its capabilities. 

Al-Jaafari pointed out that Syria was not alone, as it had many friends who always stood with it. It also stood with them likewise, pointing out in this context that the formation of a “group of like-minded countries” in the United Nations, which is composed of twenty countries including Russia, China, Syria, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba and others, and the review of some countries’ stances towards Syria is a form of victory for Syria and its allies and friends over the enemies.

Al-Jaafari said that Syria considers the Palestinian question its central and principled issue, pointing out that the current Palestinian popular uprising that extended to include the occupied territories in 1948 confirms the strength of the Palestinian people and is an indication of its victory over the Israeli occupier.

Al-Jaafari stated that this uprising exposed the hypocrisy of the West, especially the United States, which claims to respect international humanitarian law while continuing to support the Israeli occupation and cover up its crimes against the Palestinians in the UN Security Council.

Al-Jaafari stressed that the Syrian-Iranian relations are deeply-rooted and historical, and that the unified reading of the two leaderships regarding the developments in the regional and international arenas has elevated these relations to become more than  strategic that would change the definition of the entire regional geopolitics, indicating that the region expands many horizons of common political, economic and cultural cooperation to meet the needs of countries and peoples of the region.

K.Q.