YouSaid · the spoken record

Sabbagh

lines on the record: 652
first: 2021-06-03
most recent: 2023-09-27
sittings or episodes: 62
sources: un-security-council

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“In that context, I would like to highlight the most recent developments related to cooperation between the Syrian National Authority and the OPCW Technical Secretariat. First, the Syrian National Authority submitted its 114th and 115th monthly reports for May and June respectively regarding the activities it conducted on Syrian territory. Second, the Syrian National Authority facilitated two visits by a reduced Declaration Assessment Team (DAT) to Damascus this year, during which the Syrian National Authority demonstrated the highest level of cooperation by providing access to certain sites, facilitating the collection of samples and doing interviews with witnesses.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9372 (2023) · source
“Mr. Sabbagh (Syrian Arab Republic) (spoke in Arabic): At the outset, I would like to reiterate the Syrian Arab Republic’s condemnation of the use of chemical weapons at anytime, anywhere, by whomever and under any circumstances. I would also like to reiterate our total rejection of the false accusations and desperate lies launched by certain countries against my own. Despite my country’s many reservations concerning the working methods of the Technical Secretariat of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the Syrian Arab Republic continues to cooperate with the organization, guided by its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) and in line with its strategic decision taken in 2013 to join the CWC and destroy its entire stockpile and production facilities.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9372 (2023) · source
“The time has come for the Security Council to unite around an acceptable objective and balanced approach to the humanitarian issue in Syria aimed solely at meeting the humanitarian needs of the Syrian people. The meeting rose at 11.05 a.m.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“My delegation thanks the delegation of the Russian Federation for its initiative to submit the draft resolution just voted on (S/2023/507). Our thanks go also to China for its support based on its keenness to improve the humanitarian situation in Syria by strengthening aspects of resolution 2672 (2023) and ensuring the implementation of its essential pillars to reflect positively on the humanitarian situation in Syria. The draft resolution submitted by the delegation of the Russian Federation represents a sincere attempt to enable the Council to fulfil the responsibility entrusted to it to improve the humanitarian situation in Syria in a real and effective manner. In conclusion, my delegation would like to thank the delegation of our sisterly the United Arab Emirates for its sincere efforts to reach a consensus-based text.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“At the same time, we are left wondering how planning and predictability can be ensured in the light of the huge funding shortfall, which has not yet reached 12 per cent of what is needed this year. My delegation deplores the insistence of some Western delegations in the Council on distorting the facts and diverting the debate from the justified and objective concerns expressed and supported by the delegation of the Russian Federation, among others. The continued politicization of humanitarian work by the United States and its Western allies, their obstruction of any sincere effort to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people and their perseverance in using the cross-border mechanism as a tool of political pressure and blackmail against my country is what led to the divisive positions within the Council that we have witnessed today.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“Sixthly, the duration of the resolution should be six months, which would allow for a process of continuous evaluation and regular follow-up of the implementation of the aspects of that resolution. We appreciate the efforts made by the humanitarian co-penholders, but it is regrettable that the draft resolution they presented (S/2023/506) did not reflect the aspirations of the Syrian people, nor did it reassure us that it could be implemented in good faith. My delegation was surprised by the insistence on extending the mandate of the cross-border mechanism for a period of more than six months under the pretext of the need for planning and predictability.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“Fourthly, there should be assurances that the illegal and immoral unilateral coercive measures imposed by the United States of America and the European Union do not interfere with humanitarian relief operations that benefit the Syrian people. They hinder the implementation of the early-recovery projects referred to in the report of the Secretary-General (S/2023/284). Those who spoke today of life and death should immediately lift their inhumane sanctions against the Syrians, rather than shedding tears for them. Fifthly, concerns about the decrease in funding for the humanitarian response plan should be addressed and donor countries should be called to honour their pledges and increase humanitarian funding. The World Food Programme alone will reduce its food assistance to more than 2.5 million Syrians as a result of that funding shortfall.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“First, there is a need to accelerate cross-line deliveries, particularly in view of the catastrophic failure to facilitate any humanitarian convoys in the past six months and in taking the necessary measures to that end. Secondly, there is a need to strengthen early- recovery projects in order to incorporate sustainable development solutions, especially after the earthquake. In addition, other vital sectors of importance to the Syrian people must be included in those projects, such as support for demining and the removal of explosive devices, given their significant impact on preserving Syrian lives. Thirdly, the necessary requirements must be met for the safe, dignified and voluntary return of displaced persons and refugees to their homes and lands.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“The delegation of the Syrian Arab Republic, the primary party concerned with conveying the needs of Syrians, engaged in an open and positive manner with the humanitarian penholders and with friendly countries on the Security Council. We expressed our substantial concerns about their draft resolution clearly and transparently, based on an objective assessment of the application of resolution 2672 (2023), which has revealed weaknesses in its implementation and shown the scale of Syrians’ actual humanitarian needs. A quantum leap is needed to upgrade the humanitarian response so that it can address the living conditions and service needs of Syrians effectively. In view of that, my delegation expressed its view of how this Council should respond to the humanitarian situation.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“Mr. Sabbagh (Syrian Arab Republic) (spoke in Arabic): From the first day of consultations related to the extension of the provisions of the resolution on the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Syria, the Syrian Arab Republic has firmly adopted a constructive approach aimed solely at meeting the humanitarian needs of Syrians in all parts of Syria, without any politicization, discrimination or exclusion, particularly in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake that struck Syria in February. That disaster has had enormous humanitarian repercussions and significantly compounded an already fragile humanitarian situation. It has made it imperative to address the situation more effectively and promptly, deliver an expanded humanitarian response and find sustainable solutions to providing necessary basic services to Syrians.”
2023-07-11 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9371 (2023) · source
“Moreover, avoiding politicization of the return of refugees or preventing their return is essential. Their return requires rebuilding necessary infrastructure so that their return is dignified, which includes providing financing for de-mining efforts and clearing explosive remnants. Donors must uphold their pledges to the humanitarian response plan and early-recovery projects. As for the immediate and unconditional lifting of unilateral coercive measures, it is a moral and humanitarian obligation of countries that impose them to lift them in order to stop starving the people of Syria and their children.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“It is time that the responsibility of the United States for the humanitarian situation in the camp is recognized. My delegation stresses that the only solution to the worsening conditions in the Al-Rukban and Al-Hol camps is to close them for good. My delegation also stresses that Member States must uphold their responsibility and repatriate their citizens who are part of the foreign terrorist combatants group present in Al-Hol camp in order to prosecute them, and in particular rehabilitate and reintegrate their women and children. In conclusion, I would like to state that improving the humanitarian situation in Syria requires lasting solutions that support Syrians, especially following the earthquake. Those solutions must reduce dependency on life-saving humanitarian assistance and strengthen people’s resilience.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“It is worsening in the camps that are in Syrian areas illegitimately controlled by United States forces, such as the Al-Rukban and Al-Hol camps. Indeed, it is the destructive policies of the United States against Syria that have pushed millions of Syrians into insecurity and instability. It is those policies that have turned a significant number of them into refugees and internally displaced persons, causing them to lose their food security and putting them in a dire humanitarian situation. The repeated claims by the United States that it is providing humanitarian assistance to Al-Rukban camp in the Al-Tanf region through its non-governmental organizations are just an attempt to provide support to terrorist organizations present in that area, such as Maghawir Al-Thawrah.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“My delegation stresses once again that all the so-called exemptions that have been announced by the United States and the EU after the earthquake have not had any impact on the ground. Some EU leaders continue to maintain a hostile position towards Syria and politicize its humanitarian situation as well as the suffering of the Syrian people. They also continue to impose coercive measures that are inhumane and immoral. These leaders are excluding the Syrian State from the Brussels donors’ conference while it is the Syrian State itself that is first and foremost concerned about the needs and challenges of its people. The United States is responsible for the security and humanitarian situation in areas it controls.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“At the seventh donors’ conference in Brussels, pledges were made that show the willingness and seriousness of donor countries to honour their commitments and make sure that humanitarian work does not follow any political agenda. Yet all donor conferences cannot compensate for the wealth of the Syrian people that has been pillaged throughout the years of the crisis by occupying foreign forces. I also wish to refer to the impact of unilateral coercive measures imposed by the United States and the European Union (EU), affecting various humanitarian sectors in Syria. The recent report of the Secretary-General (S/2023/419) describes the impact of those measures on the payment and procurement activities of the United Nations.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“The World Food Programme has announced that it will have to reduce the number of beneficiaries, which threatens to put an end to the urgent food assistance that is to be delivered to 2.5 million people in July. That will affect people in all parts of Syria. This reduction is due to an acute shortage of financing because international donors have not honoured their pledges to the humanitarian response plan in Syria. Indeed, this year’s funding for the humanitarian response plan of $5.4 billion stands at only 12 per cent to date, which hampers the full implementation of resolution 2672 (2023). The question we now face is the following. What could improve predictability: delivery on pledges to finance the plan or the 12-months period? The answer is clearly funding the plan. Without this funding, it is impossible to do anything.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“Some hostile States, in coordination with their terrorist accomplices, allowed only one convoy to pass prior to the extension of the relevant resolution. That is a dangerous game that manipulates the faith of those who need humanitarian assistance. My delegation also stresses that the limited increase in the number of early-recovery projects and the small increase in funding will not allow those projects to meet the minimum required of them. They will therefore not achieve a tangible improvement in responding to the immense humanitarian needs in Syria. The real impact of those projects remains unclear. The reduction of funding is a true source of concern.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“We have provided approvals and facilities for the United Nations, including our sovereign decision to open two more border crossings and extend their work for a period of three months, ending on 13 August. We also wish to refer to several developments that have had a negative impact on the entire humanitarian response in Syria. Those developments include the fact that there has been no progress at all in providing cross- line humanitarian assistance to people in need who are difficult to reach through the borders. Indeed, terrorist groups have prevented the delivery of that assistance. Since the beginning of the year, those groups have prevented any humanitarian convoy from reaching the north-west of the country through the crossing lines.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“We primarily discussed progress made in the delivery of humanitarian aid to Syrians and the provision of basic services to them through early-recovery projects. My delegation would like to indicate that humanitarian needs are rising. Access to basic services has become even more limited. That is compounded by a severe water crisis plaguing nearly 1 million Syrians in Al-Hasakah governorate and its surroundings. That crisis also contributed to the cholera outbreak. In addition, an acute shortage of electricity is exacerbating the living conditions of the Syrian people. My delegation underscores that the Syrian Government has taken exceptional and urgent measures following the earthquake of 6 February.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“In their joint statement, the participating States recalled their firm commitment to the sovereignty of the Syrian Arab Republic and its unity, independence and territorial integrity. Those States recalled their commitment to the purposes and principles of the United Nations and their determination to work together to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. They also recalled their opposition to the separatist agendas that seek to undermine Syria’s sovereignty, stability and territorial integrity. Finally, they condemned the activities of terrorist organizations and affiliated groups that operate under various names in various parts of Syria. We listened to the briefing of Mr. Martin Griffiths. Last week, during an informal interactive dialogue, we discussed aspects of the implementation of resolution 2672 (2023).”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“We call on the Security Council to break its deafening silence and to carry out its responsibilities, under the Charter of the United Nations, to put an end to all occupation and aggression policies and to hold the perpetrators accountable. I would have liked to hear Ms. Rochdi mention, in her briefing, the suffering of our people in the occupied Syrian Golan as a result of the practices of the Israeli occupation. Those Syrians are a part of the Syrian people. On 20 and 21 June, the twentieth meeting on Syria of the guarantor countries of the Astana process was held in the capital of Kazakhstan. Since its inception, the Astana process has made important achievements to push back terrorism in Syria.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“The following day, our fellow citizens in the occupied Syrian Golan declared a general strike and a day of rage. They rejected the criminal occupation practices used against them and their land. That strike is part of general strikes that they organized since 2019 in order to counter Israeli settlement projects that target the occupied Syrian Golan. Those projects threaten to confiscate thousands of dunums of agricultural land, in stark violation of a number of relevant United Nations resolutions, especially resolution 497 (1981). The Syrian Arab Republic condemns in the strongest terms all of those crimes, aggressions and illegal practices.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“Mr. Sabbagh (Syria) (spoke in Arabic): The brutal attacks and the criminal practices of the Israeli occupying forces against the Syrian Arab Republic have intensified recently, including in the occupied Syrian Golan. On 20 June, substantial Israeli occupying forces, accompanied by bulldozers, stormed the area of Al-Hafayer, east of Masada village, in the occupied Syrian Golan. They razed agricultural lands in order to prepare for the implementation of their colonization project to install wind turbines. Given the seriousness of that plan and its negative effects, our defenceless citizens in the occupied Syrian Golan opposed the occupation forces in order to reject that colonization plan. The occupying forces responded with a barrage of bullets and smoke bombs that led to 50 casualties, some of them very serious. Others were also detained.”
2023-06-29 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9363 (2023) · source
“In that context, my delegation looks forward to the twenty-eighth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to be held by the sisterly United Arab Emirates in Dubai. We hope that the Conference will lead to resolutions that will reduce the negative impact of climate change on the peoples of our countries and on international peace, stability and security.”
2023-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9345Resumption1 (2023) · source
“In addition, the capacity to address and mitigate the effects of environmental problems has been reduced, and new obstacles to development have been created because those countries do not meet their financial obligations or provide technical support for capacity-building in order to address climate change and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. In conclusion, the examples that I mentioned are just a sample of the risks related to climate change that are now a major threat and must be addressed as soon as possible. Climate change increases the frequency and impact of natural disasters and creates scarcity of resources, which only worsens situations of instability, displacement, migration and conflicts, while contributing to new conflicts. My delegation looks forward to urgent joint international action.”
2023-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9345Resumption1 (2023) · source
“Those practices have polluted the air, soil and water and have a catastrophic impact on the population’s health, as well as on biodiversity and food security, not to mention the socioeconomic impact for the inhabitants of that region, who primarily rely on agriculture for their livelihoods. We must also mention the impact of illegal unilateral coercive measures imposed by certain Western States on the Syrian people. Those measures have hindered the transfer of environmentally friendly technologies and have hampered the implementation of many other projects aimed at protecting the environment.”
2023-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9345Resumption1 (2023) · source
“That is compounded by heat waves and forest fires that destroy wide areas, not to mention the increased frequency of dust storms that affect public health. In addition to natural factors, the terrorist war imposed on Syria has in turn had its own serious environmental impact. I will just cite the significant pollution created by terrorist groups and separatist militias that in north-east Syria control oil, oil delivery and oil refinery activities, carried out primitively and carelessly and without consideration for environmental aspects such as soil contamination. In addition, a significant number of fruit-yielding trees are being stolen and sent to other countries, while forest trees are indiscriminately cut down and used for heating purposes.”
2023-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9345Resumption1 (2023) · source
“The unprecedented impact of climate change on today’s world goes beyond environmental considerations and also includes socioeconomic and security aspects. Developing countries are some of the most affected. That is particularly true of countries that already suffer from situations of vulnerability, instability and insecurity. It is therefore important to pool efforts to counter and mitigate those impacts, including through the use of the mechanisms provided for by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement on climate change. Like other States, the Syrian Arab Republic has been affected by climate change. We have experienced droughts due to a lack of precipitation in the majority of our regions. Other areas, however, are experiencing rainstorms, which significantly harm agricultural yields.”
2023-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9345Resumption1 (2023) · source
“Mr. Sabbagh (Syrian Arab Republic) (spoke in Arabic): At the outset, I would like to congratulate you, Mr. President, and the sisterly United Arab Emirates on its presidency of the Security Council for this month. We wish you every success in your work. My delegation aligns itself with the statement delivered by the representative of the sisterly Arab Republic of Egypt on behalf of the Group of Arab States. My delegation expresses it appreciation for holding this important debate dedicated to the impact of climate change on international peace and security at a time when the problem of climate change is exacerbating and affecting the stability of a number of countries, as well as compounding the causes of conflicts around the world, such as competition for resources and water, which creates new risks that must be addressed.”
2023-06-13 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9345Resumption1 (2023) · source
“There is also a need to support the Syrian State and its institutions in its relief and development efforts in order to achieve early recovery and ensure the rehabilitation and reconstruction of damaged infrastructure and civilian facilities. I would like to draw the Council’s attention to the fact that the interpretation from Arabic into English was not accurate regarding the extension of the use of the two crossing points for a period of three months, which ends on 13 August, not in February, as the interpreter said.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“In conclusion, the Syrian Arab Republic affirms that it will not normalize its relations with those who occupy its lands, and that the political solution that we seek requires the elimination of terrorism and an end to interference in its internal affairs and to the destructive initiatives of some well-known States, including their attempts to institute additional international politicized, biased mechanisms aimed at obstructing that solution and to restore colonial legacies that are irretrievably gone. We stress that reviving our country’s economy, which will be crucial to improving the Syrian people’s humanitarian and living situations, requires lifting the unjust sanctions and the suffocating siege imposed on Syria by the United States and the European Union.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“Syria also stresses that the alleged exemptions announced by the United States of America and the European Union from those measures are nothing but cheap propaganda. They did not achieve any tangible results. Instead, some in the Council are proud of imposing additional sanctions and declare publicly that they will not back down from them.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“That will enable the implementation of projects included in the humanitarian response plan and the strategic framework for cooperation between Syria and the United Nations, in turn revitalizing the economy, supporting the dignified and voluntary return of displaced persons to their homeland and achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. In that regard, Syria condemns all Western calls for refugees not to return to their homeland and homes under false pretexts. Thirdly, there is a need for an immediate, full and unconditional lifting of the illegal unilateral coercive measures imposed on the Syrian people. Those measures are immoral, contrary to international humanitarian law and a major impediment to humanitarian and development work.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“The Syrian Government also confirmed that it will continue to issue visas, facilitate field visits and provide the necessary facilities to the United Nations and partners in humanitarian and development work. In that context, Syria stresses the following points. First, the United Nations, its representatives and staff must not communicate with terrorist organizations and affiliated illegal entities in north-western Syria. We call for allowing the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent to supervise the distribution of humanitarian aid in those areas. Second, we stress our aspiration for international donors to assume their responsibilities and fulfil their pledges by providing the required funding for United Nations activities and programmes.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“In the context of the Syrian Government’s efforts to facilitate the arrival of humanitarian aid to those in need throughout Syria, especially in north-western Syria, and aware of the continuing need to meet the emergency needs resulting from the devastating earthquake and to continue working to recover from its impact on various sectors, the Syrian Government decided to extend its voluntary initiative to grant the United Nations permission to use the Bab Al-Salam and Al-Rai border crossings for an additional three months, ending on 13 August, in order to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Syrian civilians in need in those areas.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“The fund seeks to provide them with financial support and help them overcome the ensuing physical, material or moral harm. This decree represents a major pillar for the basic trends and the national action plan that were approved by the Syrian Government late last month to address the impact of the earthquake from various aspects. That would lead to moving our efforts from the emergency response phase of relief work to the recovery phase.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“The Syrian Arab Republic condemns in the strongest terms all those crimes and illegal practices. We call on the Security Council to break its deafening silence and fulfil its responsibilities under the Charter to put an end to all these aggressive policies, hold the perpetrators accountable and compel them to compensate the Syrian people. Turning to the humanitarian issue, the Syrian Government continues its efforts to improve the humanitarian situation of the Syrian people and to face the effects of the unprecedented earthquake disaster that struck Syria on 6 February and the tragedy it left behind at the national level. Accordingly, the President of the Republic issued decree no. 7 on the first of this month, establishing a national fund to support those affected by the earthquake.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“At the same time, Israel and its extremist authorities continues to export its internal crises through inflaming the situation in our region and to commit more acts of aggression and perpetrate crimes and gross violations of international law and the provisions of the United Nations Charter. Once again, on 1 May, the Israeli occupation forces carried out an air strike against Aleppo International Airport. Bombs of great destructive capacity were used, causing a number of martyrs and injured persons, and rendering the airport unusable. As a result, the United Nations was unable to use the airport to provide humanitarian services. Just two days ago, Israel launched yet another air strike from the occupied Syrian Golan, targeting certain points in the surroundings of Damascus, which led to material losses.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“The United States has actually exported terrorist elements into Syria in order to undermine its security and stability. American forces have also committed war crimes in Raqqa, which led to the loss of thousands of Syrian lives and the destruction of infrastructure. The United States of America resorts here to lecture about respect for the Charter of the United Nations and international humanitarian law in an attempt to deceive and conceal its own violations of the Charter and the resolutions of the Security Council and all rules and provisions of international humanitarian law.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“Moreover, they continue to support separatist militias in north-eastern Syria and plunder Syrian oil and wealth. The latest of such acts was the smuggling of 42 tanks loaded with hundreds of tons of Syrian oil from fields in the Jazira Region through illegal crossings, heading towards United States military bases on Iraqi territory. The American crocodile tears on Syrian suffering will not erase the fact that the wrongful American policies in Syria are the reason for that suffering, which is the result of its harsh, immoral and illegal sanctions against the Syrian people. The United States talks about the huge number of Syrian refugees and displaced, as if it were not the cause for such displacement and for the masses of refugees.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“In contrast to those positive trends, the United States of America and its Western allies continued their hostile statements and provocative measures against Syria, aimed at interfering in its internal affairs. They continued their concerted efforts to obstruct any attempt at achieving security and stability in Syria. They have also used terrorist elements to achieve that goal. The statements made by those States in today’s meeting and in previous meetings are a clear demonstration of the above. We did not hear today the opinion of the representative of the United States of America on her country’s continued violation of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as American forces are still illegally present on Syrian territory.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“In another context and within the framework of the Syrian Government’s endeavour to restore its sovereignty over its entire territory and to put an end to the illegal military presence of foreign forces on Syrian territory, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Expatriates participated in the quartet meeting held in Moscow on 10 May, which brought together the Foreign Ministers of Syria, Russia, Iran and Türkiye. The statement issued by the Quartet at its meeting affirmed its commitment to Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and the fight against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. It also called for an increase in international assistance to Syria for the reconstruction of the country and to facilitate the voluntary, safe and dignified return of Syrians to their homeland.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“Mr. Sabbagh (Syrian Arab Republic) (spoke in Arabic): The League of Arab States summit, which was recently held in the city of Jeddah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, was a great achievement, as it restored the glory of the collective Arab position and the momentum of joint Arab action. Most importantly, the Arab States affirmed their support for Syria in maintaining its sovereignty and territorial integrity and in overcoming the difficult circumstances it is experiencing as a result of the terrorist war it faces, the unjust economic sanctions imposed on it and the repercussions of the devastating earthquake that struck the country.”
2023-05-30 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9333 (2023) · source
“The responsibility for correcting that departure lies with the States parties to the Convention, so that the Technical Secretariat can correct its course and revert to being an impartial tool for the implementation of the CWC.”
2023-05-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9317 (2023) · source
“In conclusion, I would like to point out that the Chemical Weapons Convention, like other international conventions, was drafted on the basis of the delicate balance between the rights and obligations of the States parties. Therefore, certain countries’ claim that Syria is in non-compliance with the CWC at a time when they have worked to deprive Syria of its rights and privileges as a State party to the Convention runs counter to the spirit of the balance weighing the rights and obligations enshrined in the Convention, in addition to the biased and unprofessional way in which the Technical Secretariat is handling the Syria dossier by focusing on obligations and ignoring rights. My country continues to work openly with the OPCW, despite the Technical Secretariat’s departure from the technical and unbiased foundation established by the CWC.”
2023-05-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9317 (2023) · source
“Fourthly, Syria welcomed the holding of high- level consultations between the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Syrian Arab Republic, the Chairman of the Syrian National Authority and the Director-General of the OPCW, and earnestly looks forward to their holding as soon as possible, after an agreement on the agenda is reached. Fifthly, although the Syrian Arab Republic has continuously underscored the need for the Fact-Finding Mission to reform its working methods, address its serious defects and produce professional and impartial reports, it has continued to cooperate with that Mission, has received its teams and has provided it with all possible forms of facilitation to make its mission a success. Syria continues to wait for the Fact-Finding Mission to issue its reports on the incidents on which Syria has reported.”
2023-05-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9317 (2023) · source
“In that regard, it is regrettable that neither the most recent monthly report of the Director-General (see S/2023/297) nor the briefing delivered today by Mrs. Nakamitsu referred to the results of the report of that ninth round or the report of the eighth round before it. That means that the Technical Secretariat is not addressing those results when they reflect Syria’s full cooperation with its teams. Does that not raise a serious question about the impartiality and balance that should characterize the Director-General’s reports?”
2023-05-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9317 (2023) · source
“That therefore raises the question as to why the OPCW Technical Secretariat has so far refused to fully hold the twenty-fifth round of consultations despite the fact that the reduced team has carried out all the activities assigned to the Declaration Assessment Team. Or does it aim only to provide pretexts for others to falsely accuse Syria of non-cooperation? Thirdly, regarding the inspection activities at the facility of the Scientific Studies and Research Centre, in March the OPCW inspection team issued its report of its ninth round of inspections, conducted in September 2022. The report refers to Syria’s cooperation, as well as the inspection team’s ability to implement the objectives entrusted to it, and it does not mention any activities that run counter to the Convention.”
2023-05-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9317 (2023) · source
“The Syrian National Authority provided all the cooperation and facilitation necessary to ensure the success of their work. During both visits, several consultations were also held with the Syrian National Authority, discussing many aspects related to unresolved issues in the declaration. We facilitated visits to some sites, the collection of samples and interviews of witnesses. During both visits, none of the activities carried out by that team — which, by the way, is the same Declaration Assessment Team, without just the one expert that the OPCW Technical Secretariat insists on sending — differed in any way from all the previous 24 rounds of consultations.”
2023-05-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9317 (2023) · source
“First, on 15 March and 15 April, respectively, the Syrian National Authority submitted its 112th and 113th monthly reports related to the implementation of the decision of the OPCW Executive Council dated 15 November 2013. Secondly, with regard to the work of the Declaration Assessment Team, I would first like to clarify that Syria’s initial declaration was submitted within a short period of time, with limited experience, which was why the Team came to help Syria — with its consent — to make its initial declaration consistent with the provisions of the CWC. The Declaration Assessment Team therefore cannot and should not be considered an inspection team in any way. A reduced number of members of the Team visited Syria twice this year, first from 17 to 22 January and subsequently from 12 to 19 April.”
2023-05-08 · UN Security Council · Security Council, S/PV.9317 (2023) · source