The joint Syrian-Russian meeting on the return of Syrian refugees and displaced people begins today

Damascus, (ST) – This morning, the joint meeting of the two Syrian-Russian coordination ministerial bodies on the return of the displaced Syrians began at the Conferences Palace in Damascus.

The work of the meeting includes a session of the Syrian and Russian coordination ministerial bodies in the presence of representatives of the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations, in addition to discussing the Syrian and Russian sides’ signing of cooperation agreements in various fields.

The activities of the meeting also include stops in various governorates within the sectors of media, housing, public works, local administration, environment, electricity, higher education, agriculture, agrarian reform, industry and health, and the distribution of aid and textbooks in a number of governorates.

 In his speech, the Minister of Local Administration and Environment, Eng. Hussein Makhlouf, affirmed that the Syrian state and in close cooperation and support of friends exerted all its efforts to make hundreds of thousands of Syrians returned internally and externally, as the Syrian state works in a systematic and organized manner in various directions and aspects to secure the requirements of the steadfast Syrian citizen in his country and encourage the  displaced to return to his homeland and settle there.

 The Minister of Local Administration added that the Syrian State has issued laws help in enhancing the economic, social, living and service reality in Syria.

 Minister Makhlouf pointed out that the culture of social solidarity is rooted in Syrians, and based on that, First Lady Asma Al-Assad led the initiative to organize and unify charitable efforts before the last Ramadan.

 He also reviewed the government’s efforts in the education aspects to secure schools for students, in additions to rehabilitation of thousands of schools, tens of colleges, universities and educational hospitals.

Minister Makhlouf said that work is underway in all areas liberated by the Syrian Arab Army to rehabilitate the infrastructure in all its forms.

 He pointed out that the Syrian state continues to provide the displaced in the shelter centers and outside with the health, educational and nutritional requirements in the Al-Hwol and Al-Rukban camps.  The detained Syrian citizens face all forms of deprivation and humiliation by the American occupier and its mercenaries.

 He added that the state exerts all efforts to secure the needs of the citizen despite the unjust and unilateral coercive measures in light of the spread of the Corona pandemic and despite the theft by the American and Turkish occupations and their agents of natural resources of oil, water and agricultural crops in crimes described by clear and visible evidence and the international community in all its bodies and organizations. He called for taking the necessary measures to establish the right of the Syrian people to their land and capabilities.

 Makhlouf praised the role of friendly countries, led by the Russian Federation, in supporting and assisting in various fields. He expressed great confidence in developing this cooperation and coordination based on principles, respect and goodness for the two countries and peoples.

 Minister, Makhlouf also praised the support of friendly countries such as Iran and China to the Syrian people and their assistance in combating terrorism.

In his speech, the Special Envoy of the Russian President to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, stressed that the joint efforts of Syria and Russia contributed to the return of hundreds of thousands of displaced Syrians and refugees to their homeland after the Syrian state created the appropriate conditions for that.

 Lavrentiev said that, the priority of our joint work is to achieve the stabilization of the situation and stability in Syria to create favorable conditions for the return of refugees. For this, Russia and Syria have exerted great efforts in this regard, as they have implemented a package of works in the field of infrastructure reconstruction and restoration of basic services work.

 He stressed that Russia will continue to provide Assistance to the Syrian people in order to improve the economic and humanitarian situation, and there is a lot of hard work in this field in the future.

Lavrentiev added that, in 2010, the economic situation in Syria was developing at an accelerating pace, and there was a noticeable growth in the lives of the Syrians, but unfortunately Western countries began to work to destabilize this country.

 He continued by saying that, the Syrian people deserve great respect and support, and they will eventually win, just as they won the terrorist war from which they suffered so much.”

 For his part, Mikhail Mizintsev, head of the Russian-Syrian Coordination Center for the Repatriation of Refugees, said that Russia has contributed greatly to the fight against terrorism alongside Syria, and that the joint efforts of the two joint coordinating bodies contributed to the return of more than two million Syrian refugees to their homeland.

Raghda Sawas