Guarantor States of Astana process stress their rejection of the coercive economic measures imposed on Syria

The Guarantor states of the Astana process on Syria (Russia, Iran and Turkey) have reaffirmed their strong commitment to Syria’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. They also stressed their keenness on joint work to fight all forms of terrorism and expressed rejection of any separatist agendas that aim at undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Syrian State.

Concluding the 17th International meeting on Syria in the Astana format on Wednesday in Kazakhstan, the guarantor states issued a communiqué in which they voiced their rejection of the unilateral coercive measures imposed on the Syrian people, affirming that these unfair measures contradict the international law, the International Humanitarian Law and the UN Charter, particularly in the light of the spread of Corona pandemic.

The communiqué clarified that the guarantor states affirm the need to increase the humanitarian aid for all the Syrians without discrimination, politicization or preconditions. They called on the international community, the United Nations and its humanitarian agencies to assist Syria in the process of reconstructing the infrastructure.

 The guarantors condemned the crimes committed by terrorist groups against civilians and institutions in Syria. They reiterated the need to continue with their cooperation to completely eliminate ISIS and Jabhat Al-Nusra terrorist organizations as well as all the groups and entities which are affiliated to the internationally blacklisted Al-Qaeda terror organization.

According to the communiqué, the guarantor states discussed in details the situation in the de-escalation zone in Idleb and stressed the need to completely implement all the agreements related to this zone.

The guarantors’ discussions also focused on the situation in the northeast of Syria and agreed that security and stability can’t be attained in this region in the long-term unless they are based on preserving Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. They also asserted their refusal of any attempt to create new facts on the ground under the pretext of fighting terrorism and stressed their rejection of looting the revenues of the Syrian oil which should go to Syria.

The guarantor states emphasized that there is no military solution to the crisis in Syria, reiterating the need to push the Syrian political process forward without foreign interference in accordance the Security Council Resolution No. 2254.

They stressed their support for the constitutional committee on Syria, reiterating that its work should be done without any foreign interference or timetables imposed by foreign sides.

The guarantor states renewed their condemnation of the repeated Israeli attacks on Syria, stressing that these attacks violate the sovereignty of Syria and its neighboring countries and expose the region’s security and stability to danger, calling for an immediate halt of these attacks.

Moreover, the guarantors reiterated the need to facilitate the safe return of the internally displaced Syrians to their original areas of residence and the return of the Syrian refugees to their homeland, urging the international community to provide necessary assistance in this regard.

According to the communiqué, the guarantor states decided to hold the 18th International Meeting on Syria in Astana format in the first half of 2022, taking into consideration the situation of corona pandemic.

Hamda Mustafa