The situation relating to coronavirus in Syria is still under control: Russian Ambassador

Despite the damage caused to the health care system in Syria due to the terrorist war and the unfair Western sanctions imposed on the country, Syria has  mobilized all its resources and capabilities to confront the novel coronavirus, Russian Ambassador to Syria Aleksandr Yefimov said.

In an interview with Sputnik news agency published on Thursday Yefimov said that the situation relating to coronavirus in Syria is still under control, calling for lifting the unfair western sanctions imposed on the Syrian people and that hamper the country’s anti-virus efforts.

The Syrian government managed to act wisely and proactively before the epidemic reached it and it quickly took the required medical and administrative precautionary measures in this respect, Yefimov said.

 “I would like to refer, in particular, to the active efforts exerted by the Syrian authorities to maintain a stable social and economic situation in the country despite quarantine measures and other restrictions related to anti-Coronavirus measures,” he made it clear.

The Russian diplomat noted the continuous active cooperation between the two countries in facing coronavirus, pointing out that unlike other countries the spread of coronavirus in Syria is still limited and that Russia is considering providing additional assistance to the Syrians.

Russia and some other countries have called for the immediate and complete lifting of the sanctions imposed by the West on Syria and other countries, indicating that these sanctions hinder these countries’ ability to control the spread of coronavirus, the Russian ambassador went on to say.

He expressed his country’s support for the initiative made by the UN Chief Antonio Guterres, the UN representatives and the Russian President Vladimir Putin during the G20 emergency summit  meeting regarding building green corridors that are free of trade wars and sanctions for exchanging medicine, food, necessary equipment and technology.

“Unfortunately, our calls received no response, as the well-known defenders of the aggressive policy of imposing sanctions won’t give up their approaches ,though these policies may put today thousands of people in the most vulnerable countries on the brink of danger, and this serious problem is not limited only to Syria.”

Concerning the situation in the Syrian al-Jazira region amid the coronavirus crisis, Yefimov said Syria’s enemies in this region are trying to exploit the circumstances created by the virus and to hide behind false humanitarian slogans in order to achieve their interests, which of course have nothing to do with the interests of the Syrian people, and to continue the political and economic pressure on Syria to weaken it and force it to stop fighting terrorism.

Hamda Mustafa