Top Adviser to the Syrian President, Bouthaina Shaaban, ridicules US demands for Syria to cut its ties with Iran, Hezbollah, and the various Palestinian factions present within Damascus, all members of what is otherwise known as the ‘Resistance Axis’.

Shaaban points out that these are matters of national sovereignty, and that Syrians are well aware that the huge ongoing ‘terrorist war’ against their nation is due to their relationship with the Palestinian cause and the Iran-led ‘Axis of Resistance’.

Source: Al-Mayadeen TV (You Tube)

Date: December 18, 2020

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Transcript:

Host:

The Americans have shown you the way and laid down the conditions. (United States Special Representative for Syria Engagement) James Jeffrey has said it more than once, he said it when he was the (US) envoy to Syria and recently too after he departed from his position: (he said) you must remove Iran from Syria; sever your relations with Hezbollah; and denounce ‘terror’, in reference to the Palestinian factions that are present in Damascus. Fulfill these demands and (as far as the Americans are concerned) you will become the supreme examples of democracy, your country will be rebuilt etc. This is the real issue. How do you view these conditions and how do you respond to them?

Bouthaina Shaaban, Syrian President Bashar al Assad’s top adviser:

Mr. Kamal, when it is said that ‘these words are not worth the ink with which they were written’, this saying applies to what James Jeffrey said. Actually, he does not know that Syria has not and will not submit to their conditions, and we know very well that (our rejection of these conditions) is the actual reason behind this huge terrorist war being waged against Syria. They wish to confiscate Syria’s independent decision-making.

Neither James Jeffrey nor anyone else can decide for Damascus the nature of its relationship with Iran, Hezbollah and the Palestinian cause. All these issues are matters of sovereignty to be decided by Syria and the Syrian people. Therefore, frankly it would be better for (James Jeffrey) to remain silent.

Host:

Today, there is a new American administration Dr. Bouthaina. Do you have a message to Joe Biden’s administration?

Shaaban:

In reality Mr. Kamal, in the United States it is well known that every elected-president must pursue what they term in English ‘bipartisan policy’, meaning the policy designed by the two parties (the Democrats & Republicans).This means that no (American) president is capable of turning (totally) against the pre-designed political track for him.

However, we are looking forward to what the new administration will do, on top of which is the American military withdrawal from the territories of the Syrian Arab Republic, because this is the most important thing for us, for we cannot have relations with a country that occupies our land.

Let’s see what will happen, but we do not expect much (frankly), because the Middle East and our country have suffered from both administrations, from (both) Democratic and Republican (administrations), and hence we don’t have much reason for our hopes to be high in this regard.