"Geneva-2" continues
Switzerland is continuing the international conference on Syria "Geneva-2". As expected, negotiations between delegations from the legitimate leadership of the SAR and the "Qatari coalition" are difficult. The internal Syrian opposition, with which the discussion of the political future of the country should have gone, was beyond the framework of the conference by the efforts of the United States and its allies. And the members of the “Qatari coalition” put forward ultimatums, put some unthinkable, absurd conditions and take other non-constructive steps. For example, on January 24, when the first negotiations between the delegations were to take place, the “oppositionists” simply did not appear. Nevertheless, the first contacts between the parties did take place. The first meeting of January 25 lasted just 30 minutes and was limited to a statement by the UN Special Representative to the SAR Lakhdar Brahimi. On the second, in the morning of January 26, when the communication did not proceed directly, but through the same special envoy, the “opposition” finally formulated something remotely similar to the proposal to deliver humanitarian aid to the quarters of the Old City of Homs.
At present, these quarters are the only ones that are under the control of the militants. The army cannot control them because there are thousands of civilians there who are being held hostage by militants and used as human shields. But, when they need to, the “oppositionists” are not averse to speculating with the sufferings of these people, blaming the blame for them on Syria. Similarly, the situation is also in the Palestinian Yarmuk refugee camp in the city of Damascus, and in other areas where terrorists reign. The remaining civilians are starving and blockaded, but the gangsters, taking advantage of international concealment, and the fact that most of the media controlled by their patrons, use the position of these people for propaganda: they say, “the people suffer under the dictatorship”. And not a word that in the territories where there are no militants or who are not surrounded by them, it is precisely such suffering that is not observed. These territories suffer from another - from terrorist attacks, shelling, destruction of infrastructure facilities, but the authorities, as far as they can, do not allow hunger and support normal life.
So, the delegation of the "opposition" suggested, at first glance, a humane idea - to deliver humanitarian aid to residents remaining in the terrorist-controlled neighborhoods of the city of Homs. But even if we assume that this is humanism, then it is very, very one-sided, which the representatives of the UAR delegation paid attention to.
Advisor to the President of Syria on political and informational issues, Bussein Shaaban, stated that the government side is seeking to ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid not only to Homs, but also to all parts of Syria. "Access to humanitarian aid is not a concession. The opposition wants to get humanitarian aid delivered to one region, and we want it for the whole of Syria, for all the people," she said, saying that the ATS government, together with the UN, developed a plan to provide assistance to peaceful citizens in all hard-to-reach corners of the country. And it is precisely this plan that must be carried out to ensure that help reaches all who need it. But the terrorists in every way prevent this by shelling humanitarian convoys.
Shaaban noted that the “opposition” delegation does not represent the entire opposition. She asked: who is this delegation? If it does not represent such terrorist organizations as Dzhebhat An Nusra, the Islamic Front, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, then who?
The answer is simple - this delegation represents only a small grouping of the “opposition”. It has little to do with those who act directly on the ground, on earth. Therefore, it is difficult to negotiate with these persons on the delivery of humanitarian aid, since they cannot guarantee the unimpeded passage of convoys.
“We do not know what their real possibilities are. We are working together with the Red Cross, the Red Crescent and other organizations, but the main problem on this path is terror, ”said Buseyna Shaaban.
Other representatives of Syria pointed out the urgent need to provide humanitarian assistance to the inhabitants of the Adra workers' town in the province of Damascus, in which there are battles between gangs and the army, as well as citizens in the villages of Nubl and Zahra in the province of Aleppo. For about a year these two settlements have been heroically opposing armed groups, but they are in the blockade of terrorists.
However, the Syrian side agreed to deliver humanitarian aid to the problem areas of Homs. In addition, following negotiations, an agreement was reached on the withdrawal of women and children from there. Let me remind you once again that the problem here has never been in the position of the government, but is connected solely with the actions of gangsters who are firing at humanitarian convoys.
In addition, the parties agreed to exchange lists, on the one hand, captured terrorists, on the other - illegally held in the hands of gangs of abducted citizens.
As Lahdar Brahimi said after the talks, “this is a small step, but it was the first concrete result of the conference.” He added that in the near future a column with humanitarian aid will head to Homs. "Oppositionists" assured that armed groups would not attack the convoy.
Of course, there is little faith in terrorists, especially considering what is happening in Syria itself. While these negotiations were under way, “oppositionists” gangsters fired a Bab Tum Christian neighborhood in Damascus with a mortar. The shells hit houses, as a result, seven people were injured, and great material damage was caused to residents.
In addition, in a suburb of Damascus in the Al-Wafidin refugee camp, a child was seriously injured by an explosion of a bomb set by insurgents.
And in the province of Homs in the village of Taldu, the attackers tried to set up a "hellish car" near the hospital, but it exploded and killed several criminals.
Let's go back to Geneva. There, the Deputy Foreign Minister, Faisal Al-Mekdad, gave a press conference at which he stated that the main issue was the fight against terrorism, and it is impossible to discuss problems relating to the present and future of Syria, when people continue to die in the country.
According to Al-Mekdad, if the negotiations fail, then the responsibility for this will fall on the United States and other Western countries sponsoring terrorists. He cited the words of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that it is impossible to negotiate with terrorists. “At the same time,” he said, “US Secretary of State Kerry constantly urges us to dialogue with them.” Some countries do not deny that they support terrorists. I have a feeling that I am at a conference dedicated to war, not peace. Kerry and Haig’s statements called for war, not peace. If negotiations fail, they will be held accountable. ”
The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the SAR also demanded that the delegation of the “coalition” and journalists show elementary respect for the representatives of Syria at the conference. “We represent here not the“ regime ”, but the government of Syria,” he stressed. “Our task is to stop the bloodshed and find ways for the peace process. At the same time, we see that attempts are being made to demonize the government delegation.”
In particular, he denied the claims of some employees of hostile media that allegedly Syrian prisons are children. “I categorically deny that there are children in prisons,” he said. “These are rumors. We were ready to become the object of fabrications in the media.”
The Syrian diplomat reiterated the need to lift the unjust, unilateral sanctions imposed against the state. As a result of these sanctions, innocent citizens suffer.
“We want to discuss any topics,” said Faisal Al-Mekdad. “We hope this is the right way to save Syria from the war we are witnessing and from military intervention by outside parties, including Turkey, France, the United States, Saudi Arabia and other countries that want to kill Syrians. "
In the course of the negotiations going on in Geneva, one thing can be said: at a time when the “opposition” speaks the language of meaningless ultimatums, the delegation of the Syrian government raises specific questions concerning the improvement of the humanitarian situation in the country, rendering assistance to all who need it, and ending violence and bloodshed.
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