Statement by Permanent Representative Vassily Nebenzia at the UN Security Council Meeting on Syria
Mr. President,
We thank Under-Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo and Director of the OCHA Coordination Division Ramesh Rajasingham for the briefing.
The development of the military and political situation in the Syrian Arab Republic has recently gone through drastic changes. The terrorist threat was suppressed at the major part of the country’s territory. As a result, the authority of the legal government was reinstalled. The violence level dropped significantly. Great efforts are taken in order to restore the devastated infrastructure and get the liberated areas back to normal life. Of course, it would be premature to say that it is the end of the Syrian conflict. There are many serious tasks to accomplish first.
Above all, it is vital to set forth the intense activities in support of the efforts of Special Envoy G.Pedersen that would build up the momentum of the political settlement in Syria. The Astana ‘troika’ also facilitates the work of the Special Envoy and contributes to the developments on the political track.
The activities to launch a Constitutional Committee and establish political process are only one element of our joint movement to the Syrian settlement. It is vital to continue steps to counter terrorist threat and to extend the de-escalation to the entire area of SAR.
In this context, we cannot fail to notice two issues. First is the situation in Idlib. We are committed to the provisions of the effective Russian-Turkish memorandum of September 2018. We understand the concerns regarding the risks for the civil population of the Governorate. Nevertheless, it is self-evident that the situation in this part of Syria is moving in a dangerous direction.
Terrorist group ‘Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’ controls almost 90% of the Governorate. Terrorists do not abandon their provocative activities against the governmental forces. Since the beginning of this year over 460 such incidents have been registered; over 30 people became victims; about 100 people were wounded. We are particularly concerned by incoming information according to which ‘Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’ militants, assisted by the notorious White Helmets, prepare new stagings with the use of toxic agents. On March 23, we were reported that extremists used chemicals-laden shells against populated areas in the North of Hama. Several people were injured.
This status quo is not viable. If we only watch what is going on in Idlib, we will see it become a source of constant terrorist threat for Syria, its neighbors in the region and other States. It will not work out to pretend that Nusra militants all of a sudden have turned into moderate opposition. We should not forget that the backbone of the terrorist international is located at the territory of this Governorate.
By the way, many of us today expressed their concerns about the escalation of tension in Idlib, while totally forgetting that at the same time civilians were dying under the coalition strikes against settlement Baghouz in Deir ez-Zor Governorate. We have not heard anybody call to ‘freeze’ the situation in this area, though the reasons for people to come to ‘Al-Hol camp’ can only be described as a humanitarian disaster. It is high time ‘double standards’ were abandoned. Is ISIS somewhat different from Nusra? If there are people who think so, I am afraid they are seriously mistaken.
Second issue is the historical expertise that proves that normalization in Syria is only successful in the areas where the jurisdiction of the legitimate authorities has been restored. In this context the illegal occupation of some areas of the country, including at the North-East and in the proximity of Al-Tanf, does not only fail to facilitate the settlement, but actually undermines its prospects. I have already talked about Al-Tanf and I would like to emphasize that the situation in the South of Syria, in the vicinity of Rukban camp, remains precarious.
In response to the humanitarian calls the Syrian government agreed to organize two humanitarian convoys. However, the reality shows that keeping dozens of thousands of people in a provisional camp on a ‘humanitarian drip’ is simply inhumane.
The poll held in Rukban showed that the majority of the camp’s inhabitants wish to leave the place. However, they cannot do it. Since May, 2018, about 800 Syrians managed to leave Rukban and return to their homes. Every one of them paid $300 to the Mahavir as-Saura group to redeem their freedom.
The most sustainable solution is the resettlement. In this regard we have opened two humanitarian corridors to let people out of the camp. The government of Syria have prepared six convoys consisting of comfortable buses that are ready to head to Rukban any time in order to evacuate up to 2400 people to the chosen places of residence. Latakia, Khalidiyah, Al-Amarah, Homs, Mkhin, Al-Qaryatayn, Palmira and suburbs of Damascus have capacity to accommodate over 35 thousand of people.
On March, 26 the Russian military initiated a coordinated meeting at the Djleb checkpoint to develop a step-by-step plan of action aimed at resettling the Rukban camp. This plan would join efforts of the UNHCR, OCHA, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and the Syrian authorities. Sheiks of the tribes that were present at the camp also took part in the meeting. We also invited the American colleagues, but they never turned up and denied access of the participants to the so-called ‘security zone’ around Al-Tanf.
Nevertheless, we are committed to the dialogue on Rukban with all interested stakeholders, including the UN, US, and Jordan, without any prerequisites and politicizing of humanitarian aspects of this problem. We proceed from the assumption that the legitimate right of Syrian refugees and IDPs to get back to the places of their permanent residence should be observed and implemented.
Conceptually, there is a need to reconsider the paradigm of providing humanitarian assistance to Syria. In terms of financial resources, the conference ‘Brussels-III’ was important, however Syrian humanitarian problems cannot be solved without participation of the Syrian government. We call upon the organizers to revise their approaches. Any anti-regime projects should be cancelled, no matter in what formats they might be promoted.
We repeatedly call to realize the harmfulness of unilateral sanctions that a number of Western countries imposed on Damascus. They only aggravate the humanitarian situation in Syria. It is the ordinary people who suffer from it. Besides, such policy runs counter to the logic of humanitarian work. As a result: one hand gives help, the other – curbs the opportunities to utilize and sustain the national potential in order to help the Syrian population. To release funds allocated for Syrian development through major international financial institutions could be a good place to start.
It is high time we stopped speculating about refugees. Their return should be voluntary. Everybody knows that the majority of Syrians want to get back to their homeland. The Syrian government provides the required guarantees. The flow of Syrian refugees, who get back to places of their permanent residence in Syria, is steadily growing. Early in March a delegation headed by UN High Representative on Refugees F.Grandi visited Syria. Apart from contacts with the Syrian leadership in Damascus, the UN officials visited locations where refugees who had returned from Homs and Hama were accommodated. It is worth mentioning that during such study visit and after communicating with Syrians, the UN delegates could see for themselves that the repatriates lived in normal conditions and did not have any complaints once they had returned.
We suggest joining a fair partner-like interaction aimed at bringing Syria back to stability. This should be effected not only through countering terrorist threat, but also through revitalizing the country’s economy. Russia makes its contributions: we helped to restore over 31 thousand housing units, 148 medical and 836 educational facilities and to repair thousands of kilometers of roads.
Together we will be able to put an end to armed action in the SAR and focus on the promotion of the political process that will ensure national reconciliation.
Thank you.
