Kurds say Syria risks further destabilization if Assad loses power now

January 27, 2017 By administrator

MOSCOW,— Syria risks further destabilization unless President Bashar Assad stays in power into the transitional period, a member of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) told Sputnik on Friday.

“Assad should in any case remain for a certain period until the transition, because otherwise the radical groups will lead the situation similar to Syria, Yemen, Somalia,” Abd Salam Ali said.

He further stressed that all of Syria’s long-standing problems “can be resolved only through federalization.”

“We need to find a formula that would allow Syria to remain united, but for everyone in Syria to feel that they gained their rights,” Salam Ali said.

Addressing the Russian draft of the Syrian constitution circulated at January 23-24 talks in Astana, Kazakhstan, he noted that it “partly, not completely, reflects what we would like to see.”

Syrian Kurds have long sought official recognition of the Kurdish language and their culture in Syria under Bashar al-Assad and his father’s regime.

Under Assad regime, the Kurdish language was not allowed to be taught in schools. In 1962, 20% of Syria’s ethnic Kurdish population were deprived of Syrian citizenship following a controversial census.

Syrian Kurds welcome the exclusion of the word “Arab” from the “Syrian Arab Republic” title in the Russian draft of the Syrian constitution, a member of the PYD Khaled Issa told Sputnik on Friday.

In 2013, Syrian Kurds have established three autonomous zones, or Cantons of Jazeera, Kobani and Afrin and a Kurdish government across Syrian Kurdistan (northern Syria) in 2013. On March 17, 2016 Syria’s Kurds declared a federal region in Syrian Kurdistan.

Syrian Kurds on Dec. 30, 2016 have approved a blueprint for a system of federal government in Syrian Kurdistan, reaffirming their plans for autonomy in areas they have controlled during the civil war.

Assad: ‘Everything’ up for discussion in Astana talks

January 9, 2017 By administrator

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad announced that his government was willing to negotiate on “everything” during proposed peace talks in Kazakhstan. However, there has been no date set for the talks yet.

President Assad said that his delegation was willing to approach the negotiating table with an open mind during upcoming peace talks in the Kazakh capital of Astana, and that he was ready to discuss even his position as president. Assad added, however that his “position is linked to the constitution.”

“If they want to discuss this point they must discuss the constitution,” he said, indicating that any new constitution would have to be put to a referendum, and that it was up to the Syrian people to elect the president.

A visiting French lawmaker, Thierry Mariani, said that Assad also declared himself willing to negotiate with nearly 100 rebel groups fighting against his government. Despite his willingness to sit at the table with the warring parties, the Syrian president said that lasting peace could only be achieved in a unified country.

Details on peace talks still unclear

Syria’s biggest ally Russia had announced in December 2016 that new talks would be held in Kazakhstan following the recapture of eastern Aleppo from rebel hands earlier that month. Turkey and Iran had also agreed to participate in the talks, but details remain sketchy; it is not clear who will represent the opposition after rebel fighters suffered their biggest defeat of the war in Aleppo. The date for the talks is also yet to be announced; Turkey has suggested that the Astana talks could be convened around the last week of January.

“Who will be there from the other side? We do not yet know. Will it be a real Syrian opposition?” Assad asked during remarks made to French media, as later published by the Syrian state-run news agency SANA. Rebel groups operating under the “Free Syrian Army” banner had announced earlier in January that they had frozen any talks about their possible participation in the Astana talks due to violations of the ceasefire brokered by Turkey and Russia.

Assad also stressed that the truce was repeatedly being violated and that the Syrian army would therefore have to recapture all of Syria. Assad particularly highlighted a rebel-held area near Damascus where water supplies have been bombed out of service. He added that his government delegation was ready to go to Astana “when the time of the conference is set.”

Liberation of “Islamic State”-held territories

Assad acknowledged that the recapture of the eastern parts of Aleppo was a “tipping point” in the war, saying that he considered his military to be “on the way to victory.”

“The victory will be when you get rid of all the terrorists,” Assad said in the interview which was shown on the French networks France Info, LCP and RTL television. Syria’s president is known for using the term “terrorist” as a blanket term for anyone opposed to his government in the conflict.

Asked whether the Syrian government was planning to recapture the city of Raqqa, which is held by the self-styled “Islamic State” group, Assad said it was the Syrian army’s job to liberate “every inch” of Syrian land and all Syria should be under state authority.

“Of course it’s very painful for us as Syrians to see any part of our country destroyed, or to see any bloodshed anywhere. Every war is bad,” he said.

“Is it better to leave [civilians] under [the rebels’] supervision, under their oppression, by beheading, by killing?”

The violence in Syria has killed almost half a million Syrians since 2011 and has displaced more than half the country’s population while causing massive destruction.

ss/msh (Reuters, AFP)

His Holiness Aram meets with Assad in the Syrian capital

January 5, 2017 By administrator

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met on Wednesday with His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia in the Syrian capital, where the pontiff congratulate Assad and the people of Syria for the liberation of Aleppo by government forces, reported Syria’s Sana news agency.

During the meeting, Assad affirmed that the war that has plagued Syria and the Syrian people for the past six years has failed to achieve one of its most dangerous goals, which was undermining the Syrian people’s unity and harmony.

“[T]his war has made Syrians more steadfast and more determined to remaining committed to their identity and civilization which is based on diversity, and plurality, something what has been a defining attribute of Syrians’ history throughout centuries,” said al-Assad, according to the report.

“His Holiness offered his sincerest hopes and prayers for the [complete] liberation of Syria from terrorism so that peace and security would prevail in Syria as soon as possible,” read a part of the Sana report.

Great House of Cilicia reported Tuesday, the Catholicos will spend Armenian Christmas eve and day, as well as the upcoming weekend in Aleppo, where he will hold Christmas Mass, meet the community and tour community institutions to assess the situation there.

Aleppo liberation victory for Syria, Iran, Russia: President Assad

December 22, 2016 By administrator

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (C) meets with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Jaberi Ansari (L) in Damascus, December 22, 2016.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says the recent recapture of the strategic northwestern city of Aleppo from foreign-backed terrorists is a victory not just for his country, but also for its Russian and Iranian allies.

Assad made the remarks in a meeting with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Jaberi Ansari and his accompanying delegation in Damascus on Thursday.

Aleppo’s liberation “is also a relapse for all the countries that are hostile towards the Syrian people and that have used terrorism as a means to realize their interests,” he said

The Syrian head of state also hailed the battlefield successes as a “basic step on the road to ending terrorism in the whole of Syrian territory and creating the right circumstances for a solution to end the war.”

Jaberi Ansari, for his part, briefed Assad on the ongoing diplomatic efforts aimed at ending terrorism in Syria, particularly the recent trilateral meetings between Iranian, Russian and Turkish officials.

He further noted that the strategic Tehran-Damascus relations have helped reinforce the two countries as well as other regional nations in the face of foreign plots.

The senior Iranian diplomat also highlighted Tehran’s determination to further strengthen relations with Syria and help the Arab nation stand against terrorism.

Syria announced the full liberation of Aleppo on December 15, with Assad praising the victory as “history in the making and worthy of more than the word ‘congratulations’.”

‘Assad’s fate not under discussion’

In another development on Thursday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Moscow was not discussing the future of President Assad in its talks with Iran and Turkey.

After the mid-December liberation of Aleppo, Tehran, Moscow and Ankara held a round of trilateral discussions in Moscow, where the trio agreed to help find a political solution to the crisis in Syria.

In a joint statement issued following the talks, the three sides welcomed concerned efforts in eastern Aleppo, which had been controlled by foreign-backed militants since 2012, allowing for voluntary evacuation of civilians and organized departure of the armed opposition.

Iran and Russia support the Syrian government in the fight against terrorism. Moscow has been providing air cover for the Syrian army’s counterterrorism operations on the ground since September 2015.

Tehran has also been offering advisory assistance to Syrian armed forces.

This is while Ankara, along with its Western and regional allies, is a staunch supporter of the militants operating to topple the Damascus government since March 2011.

Ankara and its partners have long been seeking the ouster of Assad as part of any solution to the conflict in Syria.

Source: http://presstv.com/Detail/2016/12/22/501985/Syria-Aleppo-Bashar-Assad

Only one man Erdogan fear is Putin, backtracks on Syria Assad removal after calling with Putin,

December 1, 2016 By administrator

Turkey’s military operation in northern Syria does not target any country or individual, and is aimed only at terrorist groups, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. He had earlier stated that Turkey was in Syria to “end the rule of the cruel Assad.”

“The aim of the Euphrates Shield Operation [in northern Syria] is not any country or person, but only terrorist organizations,” Erdogan said Thursday, as quoted by the Hurryiet Daily News.

“No one should doubt this issue that we have uttered over and over, and no one should comment on it in another fashion or try to derail it,” he added.

The latest comments come in contrast to remarks Erdogan made on Tuesday, when he said Turkey’s operation in Syria, launched in late August, aimed “to end the rule of the tyrant [Syrian President] al-Assad who terrorizes with state terror.”

This drew surprise from Russia, which asked for clarification of the remarks.

According to Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, this was provided when Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish leader Erdogan discussed the issue by phone on Wednesday.

“I can only say that a telephone conversation between our president and Erdogan took place yesterday, and the topic [of Turkey’s presence in Syria] was addressed. Yes, he [Erdogan] gave an explanation,” Ushakov told reporters on Thursday, without elaborating.

On Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Ankara’s operation in Syria is aimed at combating Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorists and other armed terrorist groups.

Currently, in the framework of the ‘Euphrates Shield’ operation we are specifically working with our partners and allies. Our goal is to clear Syria, this region, from Daesh [Arabic pejorative term for Islamic State], from terrorists and Al-Nusra [Front] insurgents,” Cavusoglu said, speaking at a joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the Mediterranean town of Alanya.

“We will continue to pursue a policy that is harmonic and coincides with the position of Russia – to search for and find a political solution to the conflict and to provide systematic humanitarian assistance,” Cavusoglu added, as quoted by the Interfax.

He stated that Turkey’s policy on Syria “remains unchanged.”

“We are cooperating with other countries, but we think that our close cooperation with Russia will provide greater benefits,” Cavusoglu said.

Without a political solution on Syria, the fight against IS may prove ineffective, the Turkish foreign minister acknowledged following the meeting with his Russian counterpart.

Lavrov stressed on Thursday that he expected close Russia-Turkey cooperation on Syria to help make a real contribution to the implementation of decisions by the international community.

Moscow demands answers after Turkish Tyrant Erdogan vows to oust Assad

November 30, 2016 By administrator

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (File Photo: AFP)

The Kremlin on Wednesday demanded an explanation after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Ankara intervened in Syria solely to topple President Bashar al-Assad.

Turkish forces are pressing on with a three month operation inside war-torn Syria in support of anti-Assad forces, while Russia is the chief ally of the Syrian president in the conflict that has claimed more than 300,000 lives since 2011.

Yet Turkey and Russia have also been working hard to improve relations after clinching a reconciliation deal in June to repair ties brought to a historic low by Turkey’s shooting down of a Russian jet in November 2015.

Erdogan had said Tuesday at a meeting in Istanbul in support of the Palestinians: “We went in there to put an end to the rule of the tyrant Assad who carries out state terror, not for anything else.”

His comments came as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is due to meet Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu for talks in the Turkish resort of Alanya on Thursday.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists he hoped that “clarification will come shortly from our Turkish partners”.

Peskov said Erdogan’s comment “really came as news,” adding that it “is not in harmony with previous statements” and “not in harmony with our understanding of the situation”.

Turkey is waging the operation inside Syria against Islamic State (IS) militants and also Kurdish militia to back pro-Ankara rebels, in an unprecedented military incursion.

There has so far been no indication of clashes with Assad’s forces in the operation or that Turkey plans any offensive against regime-held territory.

Russia has generally steered clear of any sharp criticism of the Turkish offensive.

But the Turkish army accused the Syrian regime last week of launching an airstrike that killed four Turkish soldiers in Syria, the first time it has made such a claim during the incursion.

Erdogan has repeatedly pushed for the ouster of Assad as the only solution to end the Syrian civil war and had, until recently, vehemently criticised Russia’s military support for his forces and even accused President Vladimir Putin of “war crimes”.

But since the deal to normalise ties between Turkey and Russia, Ankara has been remarkably muted in its criticism of Russia’s actions — in particular its backing for Assad forces in the battle for Aleppo.

Erdogan and Putin discussed the Syria conflict on Saturday by telephone for the second time in just over 24 hours.

Source: http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/251103.aspx

Bashar Al-Assad Tell NBC U.S. Is ‘Not Serious’ About Defeating ISIS

July 14, 2016 By administrator

assad nbc by Bill Neely

DAMASCUS, Syria — A defiant Bashar al-Assad expressed confidence that Syria’s bloody war could be won within months, saying Russia’s intervention has helped tip the scales toward victory.

Assad spoke exclusively to NBC News on Wednesday at his office in Damascus in a wide-ranging interview about the Syrian war, ISIS, the U.S. and his legacy.

He was unruffled by the State Department branding his vow to retake every inch of Syria as “delusional,” saying it was only a matter of time until he regained full control of his country.

The Syrian army has made a lot of advancement recently,” Assad told NBC News. “It won’t take more than a few months.”

Assad’s tone was strikingly different from a year earlier, when he was short of troops and losing territory to rebels and ISIS. The battlefield shifted, according to Assad, for one reason.

“The Russian support of the Syrian army has tipped the scales against the terrorists,” he said. “It was the crucial factor.”

His forces were teetering on the brink of defeat before Russia’s military intervention got underway in September. Since then, they’ve made significant territorial gains — like retaking the ancient city of Palmyra from ISIS.

While Russia has insisted its operations targeted terrorists, the West has accused Russian forces of bombing civilian targets and Assad’s moderate enemies — not jihadis.

Russia’s influence with Assad is in focus Thursday as Secretary of State John Kerry heads to Moscow for talks with Putin. Syria is high on the agenda — as is speculation of a backchannel deal involving Assad giving up power.

WATCH: NBC News’ Full Interview with Syrian President

Assad however dismissed those rumors unequivocally, telling NBC News he was confident that Russia had his back.

“The Russian politics is not based on making deals — it’s based on values,” he said.

And according to Assad, the “very frank” relationship he has with Putin is rooted in their shared values and common interest: defeating terrorists.

The Syrian president claimed that’s far from true of the U.S., which he accused of not truly wanting to see ISIS’ defeat.

“They’re not serious,” Assad said.

‘War against terrorism’: Assad vows to continue fight, crush dreams of ‘fascist’ Erdogan

June 28, 2016 By administrator

Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad speaks to Parliament members in Damascus © SANA / Reuters

Syrian President Bashar Assad has vowed to continue the government’s “war against terrorism,” slamming the “fascist regime” of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The remarks came after Ankara reportedly sent troops to fight alongside rebels in Aleppo.

“Our war on terrorism will continue not because we like war. They imposed the war on us,” Assad said in a speech to the newly-elected parliament on Tuesday, reiterating the role that foreign countries have played in Syria’s five-year civil war. “The shedding of blood will not end until we uproot terrorism, wherever it is.”

Assad also said he plans to win back “every inch” of Syria, and that Aleppo will be a graveyard for Erdogan’s ambitions.

“Aleppo will become a tomb where all dreams and hopes of this butcher will be buried,” the Syrian president said, as quoted by TASS.

“The fascist regime of Erdogan focused its attention on Aleppo as it was crushed in Syria and this is the last hope to implement its ‘Muslim Brotherhood’ Islamist project,” he continued.

The Erdogan remarks come after the Syrian leader accused the Turkish president – a major supporter of those fighting to oust Assad from office – of recently sending thousands of insurgents to fight government troops in Aleppo.

Russia, which has been on a bombing campaign against Islamic State and other terrorist groups in Syria since September, said on Saturday that more than 2,000 militants had mobilized in the Aleppo area.

The city and its surrounding area – located on the border with Turkey – have been a focal point of the country’s bloody civil war, divided between government and rebel control. Aleppo is Syria’s second-largest city and former commercial hub.

Assad also blamed the opposition for its failure of three rounds of indirect peace talks in Geneva this year, calling his opponents “traitors for foreign countries who have become mats for the feet of their masters.”

He went on to thank Russia, China, and Iran for the support they have provided to the Syrian government. He also expressed gratitude towards the Lebanese Shia Muslim group Hezbollah.

The Syrian president emphasized the strong ties between the alliance, particularly with Iran and Russia, saying it was stronger than ever. He stressed that people should not listen to reports about “differences, struggles, and divisions.”

That statement came just one day after Moscow said it would provide “the most active” support to the government in order to prevent Aleppo from falling into the hands of terrorists.

The Syrian government has made advances since Russia began its aerial campaign, helping troops capture Palmyra in March.

“The way we liberated Palmyra and before that many areas, we will liberate every last bit of Syria from their hands. We have no choice but to be victorious,” Assad said during his speech.

He went on to reiterate that he has no intention of backing down and allow a sectarian partition of Syria, something he said is against the fundamental principles of the country’s constitution.

“A sectarian system turns the sons of the nation into enemies and foes,” he said.

The speech came as the government continued an advance to capture IS strongholds on Tuesday, including Raqqa. Syria’s air force also destroyed several IS positions south of Raqqa, according to the state news agency SANA.

Syria’s civil war, which shows no signs of ceasing, has led to the deaths of more than 250,000 people and displaced over 12 million others, according to official UN figures.

Syria’s Assad appoints new prime minister

June 22, 2016 By administrator

Syria’s Assad appoints new prime minister

Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad has asked the country’s electricity minister to form a new government.

Imad Khamis was tasked with forming the new cabinet on Wednesday, Syria’s official news agency, SANA, reported.

Sources had earlier told the Russian English-language news channel RT that the new cabinet will include 12 new ministers, such as the justice minister, health minister and the minister of electricity.

According to the report, the key portfolios will remain intact as the ministers of foreign affairs, interior, defense and finance will not be changed.

Khamis is to submit his proposal for new ministerial appointments in the coming days, AFP reported.

He is a 54-year-old engineer, who is to replace Wael al-Halqi who had held the post since August 2012.

Khamis had served as Syria’s minister of electricity since 2011 and is an electrical engineer. He has been under sanctions by the European Union since March 2012.

The changes come more than two months after parliamentary elections were held in the country on April 13, in which a high voter turnout was recorded.

A number of opposition parties were running in the race, but armed opposition groups boycotted the vote and called it illegitimate. Parliament members are elected for a four-year term in Syria.

Syria has been grappling with a deadly crisis it blames on some foreign states for more than five years.

UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimates that over 400,000 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict since March 2011. The UN has stopped its official casualty count in the Middle Eastern state, citing its inability to verify the figures it receives from various sources.

Backed by the Russian air cover, Syrian forces have managed to liberate many militant-held areas over the past few months.

Russia: US strikes on Assad will plunge Mideast into chaos

June 17, 2016 By administrator

Russia has warned against a call by US State Department officials for strikes against the Syrian government, saying Moscow is opposed to a military solution.

The Kremlin said on Friday such a move would plunge the entire region into complete chaos.

Dozens of State Department officials have signed an internal document that calls for targeted military strikes against the Syrian government, according to the Wall Street Journal.

US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday that the internal memo on Syria signed by more than 50 US diplomats is an “important statement” that he would discuss when he gets back to Washington.

“It’s an important statement and I respect the process, very, very much. I will … have a chance to meet with people when I get back,” Kerry told Reuters during a visit in Copenhagen.

The memo is sharply critical of US policy in Syria, calling for military strikes against the Assad government.

An unnamed US official familiar with the document said the internal cable may be an attempt to shape the foreign policy outlook of the next US administration.

“It is not a secret to us that there are political forces in the US who favor a military solution [to the Syrian crisis]. But this is not our method,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Friday.

The United States and its allies have been conducting airstrikes against what are said to be Daesh terrorists inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from Damascus or a UN mandate.

The attacks have largely failed to fulfill their declared aim of destroying Daesh but killed civilians and targeted the Syrian infrastructure in many cases.

Washington has consistently refused to join forces with Russia in Syria against Daesh ever since Moscow launched its campaign of airstrikes in September last year.

On Thursday, a senior US defense official accused Russia of carrying out airstrikes in southern Syria against US-backed forces.

The accusation came a day after Kerry said the US was losing patience with Russia over its support for the Syrian government.

“Russia needs to understand that our patience is not infinite. In fact it is very limited with whether or not al-Assad is going to be held accountable,” he said.

Responding to those remarks, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said he believed the US might hope to use al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria to unseat President Assad’s government.

Lavrov said in St. Petersburg on Thursday that the reluctance of US-backed opposition groups to distance themselves from the Nusra Front has been a major reason behind continuing fighting.

The US could be “playing some kind of game here, and they may want to keep al-Nusra in some form and use it to topple the regime,” Lavrov said.