U.S. Emboldens Terrorist Groups in Syria: Moscow, Damascus
DAMASCUS (Dispatches) – The United States and its allies revitalize and boost terrorist activities in Syria, Mikhail Mizintsev, head of Russia’s National Center for State Defense Control, and Hussein Makhlouf, Syria’s Minister of Local Administration and Environment, said in a joint statement issued on Thursday.
Terrorists regularly conduct attacks on state structures, humanitarian convoys, and mass gatherings of citizens in the war-torn country.
"In violation of international law and the UN Charter, the Americans launch airstrikes on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic, occupy large areas of the country and openly support illegal armed groups, thereby stimulating the growth of terrorist activity,” the statement read.
The statement notes that terrorists have been particularly active on territories that are not controlled by Damascus, as extremists from Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham ambush attack on the departments of government security agencies and state institutions in the country’s south.
Central Syria is regularly rocked by attacks of Daesh terrorists on humanitarian convoys and social infrastructure facilities. Besides, terrorists often use improvised explosive devices to commit terror acts in places of mass gatherings of civilians, the statement read.
Meanwhile, Russia ripped Western countries for their continued use of Syria’s so-called chemical file to exert more pressure on the war-ravaged Arab country, despite the fact that the Damascus government has completely and irreversibly dismantled its chemical weapons production facilities and stockpiles.
"Syria joined the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) voluntarily, with encouragement from Russia, implemented basic conditions under the Chemical Weapons Convention and got rid of its entire chemical weapons arsenal,” Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said at a virtual session of the UN Security Council on Thursday.
He added, "In 2014, Syria completely abandoned its chemical weapons program, destroyed all its chemical warfare stockpiles and destroyed its chemical-weapons production facilities – something confirmed by the OPCW more than once.”
The Russian diplomat noted that some countries are repeatedly using the chemical weapons "card” as a tool to pressure the Syrian government, using grave accusations "backed up by unconvincing evidence like video footage on social media or testimony of knowingly biased witnesses, or falsified facts.”
He said, "they reject the counter-arguments provided not only by Russia and Syria, but also by independent experts and organizations, and do not give any coherent explanation as to why they do so.”
Nebenzia also said that the OPCW and its technical experts have become the "transmitter of anti-Syrian claims of the Western countries.”
"The root cause of the problem is that our Western colleagues have long turned Syria’s chemical file into a means of punishment of the unwanted authorities in Damascus,” the Russian UN ambassador said.
"Therefore, attempts to establish the connection between the file and actual use or non-use of chemical weapons are absolutely senseless,” Nebenzia pointed out.
Terrorists regularly conduct attacks on state structures, humanitarian convoys, and mass gatherings of citizens in the war-torn country.
"In violation of international law and the UN Charter, the Americans launch airstrikes on the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic, occupy large areas of the country and openly support illegal armed groups, thereby stimulating the growth of terrorist activity,” the statement read.
The statement notes that terrorists have been particularly active on territories that are not controlled by Damascus, as extremists from Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham ambush attack on the departments of government security agencies and state institutions in the country’s south.
Central Syria is regularly rocked by attacks of Daesh terrorists on humanitarian convoys and social infrastructure facilities. Besides, terrorists often use improvised explosive devices to commit terror acts in places of mass gatherings of civilians, the statement read.
Meanwhile, Russia ripped Western countries for their continued use of Syria’s so-called chemical file to exert more pressure on the war-ravaged Arab country, despite the fact that the Damascus government has completely and irreversibly dismantled its chemical weapons production facilities and stockpiles.
"Syria joined the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) voluntarily, with encouragement from Russia, implemented basic conditions under the Chemical Weapons Convention and got rid of its entire chemical weapons arsenal,” Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said at a virtual session of the UN Security Council on Thursday.
He added, "In 2014, Syria completely abandoned its chemical weapons program, destroyed all its chemical warfare stockpiles and destroyed its chemical-weapons production facilities – something confirmed by the OPCW more than once.”
The Russian diplomat noted that some countries are repeatedly using the chemical weapons "card” as a tool to pressure the Syrian government, using grave accusations "backed up by unconvincing evidence like video footage on social media or testimony of knowingly biased witnesses, or falsified facts.”
He said, "they reject the counter-arguments provided not only by Russia and Syria, but also by independent experts and organizations, and do not give any coherent explanation as to why they do so.”
Nebenzia also said that the OPCW and its technical experts have become the "transmitter of anti-Syrian claims of the Western countries.”
"The root cause of the problem is that our Western colleagues have long turned Syria’s chemical file into a means of punishment of the unwanted authorities in Damascus,” the Russian UN ambassador said.
"Therefore, attempts to establish the connection between the file and actual use or non-use of chemical weapons are absolutely senseless,” Nebenzia pointed out.