Alleviating Syrian humanitarian crisis paramount, say partners

HE the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have affirmed the need to preserve the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria and alleviate the humanitarian crisis the Syrian people are exposed to.

In a joint press conference after the tripartite meeting held in Doha on Thursday, Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani said the Syrian crisis has led to immense sufferings for the Syrian people, especially in light of the repercussions of the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.He added the tripartite meeting discussed the humanitarian crisis, the need to find ways to deliver humanitarian aid to them quickly and their conviction in apolitical solution to the Syrian crisis. He underlined support for this solution in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions while driving home the importance of combating terrorism in all its forms.He pointed out that the meeting also confirmed the support of the three countries for the Secretary-General of the United Nations and his envoy to Syria, and the support of the Constitutional Committee, while emphasising the need to facilitate and increase humanitarian aid for all Syrians throughout the country without discrimination or politicisation to improve the humanitarian situation and achieve progress in the political settlement process.Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani pointed out that the meeting stressed the necessity of the voluntary and safe return of refugees and displaced persons. It also discussed the importance of co-operation and support initiatives for confidence building between the Syrian parties in a way that contributes to creating an atmosphere for the success of the process.He also affirmed Qatar’s commitment to its humanitarian and moral responsibility, indicating that it has spared no effort since the beginning of the Syrian crisis in providing effective assistance to the brotherly Syrian people, especially in light of the circumstances of the pandemic (Covid-19), which he said is a new crisis added to the Syrian people.He said he looked forward to holding tripartite meetings between the concerned countries periodically through continuous co-ordination, stressing that such meetings gain great importance in such circumstances, and he also urged envoys from the concerned countries to work continuously to translate the objectives sought from this meeting.He thanked the foreign ministers of Turkey and Russia for their participation in this meeting.With regard to Qatar's position on the return of Syria to the Arab League, he said there are reasons that necessitated the suspension of Syria's membership in the Arab League, expressing his hope for the progress of a political solution to this crisis.He also stressed that Qatar continues to support the Syrian people and reach a political settlement that paves the way for the restoration of relations between the two countries.In response to a question during the press conference, the foreign minister pointed out that it is not necessary for Qatar to have a military presence on Syrian soil, stressing that Syria is a brotherly Arab country and important to Qatar. He stressed Qatar's firm position in support of the unity of the Syrian territories and political solution to the Syrian crisis. He felt the meetings and initiatives of the envoys of the three countries with regard to humanitarian aid and its follow-up by the ministerial meetings will enhance co-operation between the three parties in the interest of the Syrian people.He explained the tripartite meeting followed the political process of the Syrian crisis and supported the Constitutional Committee, stressing the continuation of consultations between the three countries with other concerned parties interested in the Syrian issue.The foreign minister stressed the need to utilise all opportunities for co-operation amongst Qatar, Turkey and Russia through this tripartite formula as well as opportunities for co-operation in the humanitarian field, stressing his happiness, in the same context, for Qatar's support for Astana peace process in Syria.He also stressed, in response to another question, the strength of the friendly relations between Qatar and the Russian Federation, referring in this context to the bilateral co-operation between the two countries in many fields, especially in the field of investments and the presence of large Qatari investments in Russia. He emphasised that Qatar is looking forward to increasing these investments, noting there are also Russian companies operating in Qatar.He said Qatar and Russia were looking forward to supporting this co-operation, including in the cultural field, appreciating the great Russian support for the preparations made by Qatar to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup finals, as well as its support for Al-Ula summit statement and the positive developments taking place in Libya, and the efforts and initiatives to bring peace to Afghanistan and co-ordination with Qatar in this regard.Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani also indicated that there is co-ordination between Qatar and Russia regarding the upcoming Moscow meeting on the Afghan crisis and the peace process in Afghanistan, stressing that the relationship between the two countries is based on trust.He pointed out that there is no competition between Doha and Moscow regarding the Afghan negotiations, indicating that Russia had extended an invitation to the representative of Qatar to attend the Moscow meeting, which confirms Russia's support for the negotiation process on Afghanistan.He stressed the mutual understanding between Qatar and Russia based on several foundations related to this issue, noting the importance of building on it, assuring that Qatar will spare no effort to achieve peace in Afghanistan.The foreign minister mentioned the international interest in what is happening in Qatar regarding the course of the Afghan crisis between its various parties, and the need to settle it and overcome its challenges in co-operation with partners after the war which continued for more than 40 years.In this regard, he praised US and UN efforts besides other initiatives in support of the Doha process.He expressed the hope for a speedy political solution to this crisis and an understanding between the Afghan parties in this regard, considering the agreement between the US and Taliban in Doha as a first and important step on the road to resolving the crisis between its Afghan parties. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the tripartite meeting yesterday establishes new consultations on the path to achieving peace in Syria, expressing his thanks to Qatar for hosting it.He described the conflict in Syria, which has entered its tenth year, as a negative situation, indicating that the failure to meet the legitimate demands of the Syrian people was a major cause of this conflict.The minister affirmed Turkey's position, which believes there is no solution to end the conflict in Syria except through a political process based on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254, stressing his country's support for all efforts aimed at reaching a political solution based on the principles set by the UN legitimacy.In this context, he indicated that Turkey and Russia, as guarantors of Astana process, are striving to reach this goal, stressing continuing co-operation with Qatar in order to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Syria by finding a political solution to the crisis.He indicated that the meeting reviewed the work of the Syrian Constitutional Committee, and also touched upon the necessity of pressuring the Syrian regime to achieve political gains in light of the current situation as well as discussing the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Syria with an emphasis on the need to increase efforts for humanitarian aid, especially those related to confronting the Covid outbreak.The minister indicated that millions of Syrians are now living in Turkey, pointing out that the UN data and estimates show that there are about 13.4 million Syrians in need of assistance, of whom 5.9 million are in urgent need of housing and shelter, and that there are at least 12.4 million people facing hunger, and it is estimated that there are more than 2.4 million Syrian children who are deprived of education and cannot go to school.During the conference, he touched on terrorist organisations such as ISIS, PKK and YPG that carry out terrorist acts, indicating that the tripartite meeting also touched on combating and eliminating these organisations, stressing that Turkey will continue to defend the territorial integrity of Syria, protect civilians, and will continue its fight against terrorist organisations.He pointed out that these meetings will be held regularly with Turkey hosting the next meeting, followed by Russia.In response to a question about Syria's return to the Arab League, he stated that Turkey will certainly not speak on behalf of the Arab League, but it aims to achieve a political solution and if such a solution is found, there will be a permanent solution in the region.He added that the Syrian regime, unfortunately, is still continuing its tyranny and committing crimes. It wants the solution to be military, and it does not believe in a political solution, which will not achieve any progress in the peace process in Syria and will not achieve any positive results for the region.