DEPUTY Prime Minister, Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem said Syria is ready to go for a Syrian-Syrian dialogue without any preconditions and will not comply with any precondition set by any party whatsoever.
Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, al-Moallem said the delegation of the Syrian Arab Republic to the talks in Geneva showed belief in the Syrians’ right and Syria’s future. He referred to Syria’s reply message to the letter sent by UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura on January 26 inviting the Syrian Arab Republic’s delegation to participate in the Syrian-Syrian dialogue.
The Syrian letter, al-Moallem said, stressed the Republic’s delegation’s readiness to take part in the dialogue based on the two Vienna Communiqués and the Security Council resolution no. 2254 which state that the Syrian people alone have the right to determine their future and that dialogue should be Syrian-led and one among the Syrians away from foreign interference and without preconditions.
Contrary to that, the statements of the ‘Riyadh opposition’ delegation, even before they went to Geneva, were full of preconditions, including those about the humanitarian situation, said al-Moallem. When the three terrorist bombings happened in al-Sayyeda Zainab suburb near Damascus, the crime was internationally condemned, especially by the UN Secretary General, the Security Council and the European Union, he noted.
‘Our delegation,’ al-Moallem said, ‘then wanted to put the Riyadh delegation to the test’ and asked for a condemnation statement of the crime, especially after a member of the ‘Riyadh delegation’, named Salem al-Maslat, accused the Syrian government of being behind the crime.
The ‘Riyadh opposition’ delegation however did not issue such a condemnation statement, as it was clear that they received no instruction to do so. Al-Moallem noted that the Syrian Arab Republic’s delegation asked de Mistura to provide them with ‘a list of the names of those with whom we were going to have dialogue, because we wouldn’t hold dialogue with ghosts’.
The list was only presented at the concluding session at the end of the talks, which had not even started, he explained. He said the ‘Riyadh opposition’ delegation had already decided to walk out of the dialogue, particularly after the victories made by the Syrian Arab Army, mainly those in the northern countryside of Aleppo, referring to breaking the long time terrorist siege of Nubbul and al-Zahraa towns.
‘We hoped the Riyadh delegation, who talked about humanitarian issues, would feel happy just like our people were happy with breaking the three-and-a-half year siege of 70 thousand locals of Nubbul and al-Zahraa, but they packed their luggage and left,’ added al-Moallem.
‘They didn’t feel happy simply because their affiliation is not to the (Syrian) people,’ he elaborated. He stressed that regardless of the Geneva track, the Syrian government pays the greatest attention to the humanitarian issues and to providing food and medical support to all its people, mainly those who are besieged by the armed groups and being used as human shields.
The ‘Riyadh opposition’ delegation, al-Moallem clarified, did not go to Geneva to engage in a Syrian-Syrian dialogue. ‘They went only because of the pressure practiced on them, and it was the decision of their operators in Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar to undermine the political process.’
‘Anyway, they did right walking out because they are not at all free to make decisions at the talks,’ he said. The Foreign Minister affirmed that everyone, especially de Mistura, should realise that ‘Syria goes for a Syrian-Syrian dialogue without any preconditions and will not comply with any precondition set by any party whatsoever’.
He noted that the two Vienna Communiqués and the Security Council resolutions assert de Mistura’s responsibility for forming the opposition delegation and also stress having the broadest possible representation of the opposition groups. However, al-Moallem said de Mistura started picking names in a personal capacity, was being selective and named some of those whom he selected as advisors.
He pointed out that the delegation of the Syrian Arab Republic told de Mistura that it was important to not repeat the mistakes of Geneva 2 in that the representation of the opposition groups should be the broadest possible in compliance with the resolution no. 2254, which cited the opposition groups of Moscow, Cairo and Riyadh.
Al-Moallem found it strange that de Mistura did not meet with the delegation of the opposition from inside Syria, wondering why those have not been represented, when they have stayed in Syria all through the past period and they are national opposition who have ideas different from those of the government.
‘We want the broadest possible representation of the Syria opposition groups in Geneva conference, including the Kurds, because we want an applicable political solution that can be implemented on the ground,’ he stressed.
‘No one in the opposition can claim to be the only representative of the whole opposition,’ he said, adding ‘We hope de Mistura would take this point into consideration if we wanted to have a real and healthy atmosphere and abide by the two Vienna communiqués and the Security Council’s resolution.’
In response to a question on the Saudi regime’s announcement that it was ready to send troops to Syria, al-Moallem said the Saudi statements did not come out of the blue, but came in natural response to demands based on research centres in the US and the US Secretary of Defence’s statements to form ground troops to fight ISIS because the US doesn’t want to cooperate with the Syrian army that is fighting ISIS.
Moallem added that ‘the question to be asked is “What has Saudi Arabia done in Yemen? Has it succeeded?” It has inflicted total destruction.’ This announcement shows that Saudi Arabia is implementing the US’s will, said al-Moallem, adding that ‘it seems that after the victories of the Syrian armed forces and its allies, the conspirators and financers have got fed up with their tools on the ground who are reeling, and they decided to get involved themselves’.
Al-Moallem, however, ruled out such a move, but still recalled ‘their crazy decisions made not only against Yemen but also regarding other areas,’ noting that the mutual visits made by Erdogan and his Prime Minister and Chief of Staff to Riyadh indicate that ‘there is something being plotted under US patronage’.
‘Any ground intervention in the Syrian territories without the government’s approval would be an act of aggression that has to be confronted, and in that case confrontation will be every Syrian’s duty,’ al-Moallem stressed, adding that: ‘Any aggressor will be sent back to their country in wooden boxes’.
He reiterated Syria’s belief that the political solution is the only way to solve the crisis in Syria, noting: ‘We don’t link between what is taking place on the ground and the political work, and we are working in parallel in the fight against terrorism.’
‘This issue is one thing and Geneva conference is another thing,’ he added. ‘We are very keen on Syria’s sovereignty and territorial safety and ridding it of terrorism… Aggressors who dare attack Syria, be they from Turkey, Saudi Arabia or other, will return in wooden coffins. We are a sovereign country and we will repel any violation,’ al-Moallem said in a stern warning.
Answering a question about announced visits to Russia by government and opposition representatives, al-Moallem said the Syrian government has received no invitation for a Moscow 3 round of talks, indicating that the Syrian crisis can only be solved politically.
‘We are leaving no stone unturned to reach a solution. If Riyadh delegation comes or not, this is their own business,’ he added. He said that counterterrorism efforts run in parallel political work, vowing that no effort will be spared in eliminating terrorism, namely ISIS and al-Qaeda-linked organisations in Syria.
Jordan’s position on Syria remains unchanged as ‘convoys of terrorists are still crossing borders, coming from Jordan to Syria and not the other way round. It is a one-way ticket. Because those who return to Jordan get killed’, he added, attributing the army’s recent successes in the southern region to the bravery of the Syrian army and popular support it enjoys rather than a change in Jordan’s stance.
Commenting on the issue of ceasefire, al-Moallem echoed the Russian Foreign Minister’s statements that this is not applicable until borders with Turkey are controlled. ‘The same holds true for Jordan’s too,’ he added.
Al-Moallem denied the existence of Syrian intelligence cooperation against ISIS with France or Britain, saying Syria does not exploit counterterrorism to make political gains. Al-Moallem said the Syrian government is ready to provide humanitarian aid for Syrians wherever they are, but said guarantees are needed to make sure that the aid will not end up in the hands of terrorists, citing the Russian and Syrian air forces’ dropping more than 90 tons of humanitarian aid over areas controlled by ISIS in Deir Ezzor.
Answering a question on when the crisis might come to an end, al-Moallem said as long as there are conspirators, who are still willing to spend their people’s money on armed groups, no-one can say for how long, adding: ‘However, with the army’s achievements, we are moving towards the finish line of the crisis whether they like it or not.’
• Saudi ground forces will not be capable of combating Takfiri terrorists in Syria, Brigadier General Hossein Salami, second-in-command of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), said in a live televised interview on Saturday night.
This is psychological warfare carried out by the Saudi regime with specific goals in an attempt to portray itself as a fighter against terrorism and divert attention from its deadly aggression against Yemen, Salami stated.
He said regional countries would never be deceived by the Saudi plot to send troops into Syria, because Riyadh has no capability to make any change in the status quo.
Salami also hailed as a ‘big event’ the recent gains made by Syrian forces in the northern countryside of Aleppo Province.
‘The liberation of Nubbul and Zahra (towns) changed the fate of regional and international political equations about Syria,’ the IRGC commander said, emphasising that Saudi Arabia was ‘one of the main losers and the strategic loser of recent victories made by Syria’s resistance’.
The Iranian commander added that Iran will not change its policies regarding Syria, saying: ‘Our policies to support Syria’s political system are logical and based on common interests and such backing will continue at political and military levels.’