8 July 202113:17
Joint Statement by the Representatives of Iran, Russia and Turkey on the 16th International Meeting on Syria in the Astana Format, Nur-Sultan, 7-8 July 2021
https://www.mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/-/asset_publisher/cKNonkJE02Bw/content/id/4809709
The representatives of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Russian Federation and the Republic of Turkey as guarantors of the Astana format:
Reaffirmed their strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic as well as to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and highlighted that these principles should be universally respected and complied with;
Expressed their determination to continue working together to combat terrorism in all forms and manifestations and stand against separatist agendas aimed at undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria as well as threatening the national security of neighboring countries. Condemned the increasing terrorist activities in various parts of Syria which result in loss of innocent lives including the attacks targeting civilian facilities. Agreed to continue their cooperation in order to ultimately eliminate DAESH/ISIL, Al-Nusra Front and all other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with Al-Qaeda or DAESH/ISIL, and other terrorist groups, as designated by the UN Security Council, while ensuring the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure in accordance with international humanitarian law. Expressed serious concern with the increased presence and terrorist activity of “Hayat Tahrir al‑Sham” and other affiliated terrorist groups as designated by the UN Security Council that pose threat to civilians inside and outside the Idlib de-escalation area;
Reviewed in detail the situation in the Idlib de-escalation area and highlighted the necessity to maintain calm on the ground by fully implementing all agreements on Idlib;
Discussed the situation in the northeast of Syria and agreed that long-term security and stability in this region can only be achieved on the basis of preservation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country. Rejected all attempts to create new realities on the ground, including illegitimate self-rule initiatives under the pretext of combating terrorism. Reaffirmed their determination to stand against separatist agendas in the east of the Euphrates aimed at undermining the unity of Syria as well as threatening the national security of neighboring countries. Expressed concern, in this regard, with the increasing hostilities against civilians. Reiterated their opposition to the illegal seizure and transfer of oil revenues that should belong to the Syrian Arab Republic;
Condemned continuing Israeli military attacks in Syria which violate the international law, international humanitarian law, the sovereignty of Syria and neighboring countries, endanger the stability and security in the region and called for cessation of them;
Expressed their conviction that there could be no military solution to the Syrian conflict and reaffirmed their commitment to advance viable and lasting Syrian-led and Syrian-owned, UN-facilitated political process in line with the UN Security Council Resolution 2254;
Emphasized the important role of the Constitutional Committee in Geneva, created as a result of the decisive contribution of the Astana guarantors and in furtherance of the decisions of the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi;
Expressed the need for the early holding of the 6th round of the Drafting Commission of the Syrian Constitutional Committee in Geneva. In this regard, reaffirmed their determination to support the Committee’s work through continuous interaction with the Syrian parties to the Constitutional Committee and the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Syria Geir O. Pedersen, as facilitator, in order to ensure its sustainable and effective functioning;
Expressed the conviction that the Committee in its work should respect the Terms of Reference and Core Rules of Procedure to enable the Committee to implement its mandate of preparing and drafting for popular approval a constitutional reform as well as achieving progress in its work and be governed by a sense of compromise and constructive engagement without foreign interference and externally imposed timelines aimed at reaching general agreement of its members;
Reiterated grave concern at the humanitarian situation in Syria and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which presents a profound challenge to all Syria’s health system, socio-economic and humanitarian situations. Rejected all unilateral sanctions, which are in contravention of international law, international humanitarian law and the UN Charter, particularly in the face of the pandemic.
Emphasized the need to increase humanitarian assistance to all Syrians throughout the country without discrimination, politicization and preconditions. In order to support the improvement of the humanitarian situation in Syria and the progress in the process of the political settlement, called upon the international community, the United Nations and its humanitarian agencies, to enhance the assistance to Syria, inter alia by developing early recovery projects, including the restoration of basic infrastructure assets – water and power supply facilities, schools and hospitals as well as the humanitarian mine action in accordance with the international humanitarian law;
Highlighted the need to facilitate safe and voluntary return of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) to their original places of residence in Syria, ensuring their right to return and right to be supported. In this regard, called upon the international community to provide the necessary assistance to Syrian refugees and IDPs and reaffirmed their readiness to continue interaction with all relevant parties, including the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other specialized international agencies;
Welcomed the successful operation on mutual release of detainees on 2 July within the framework of the Working Group on the Release of Detainees / Abductees, Handover of Bodies and Identification of Missing Persons. The operation confirmed the willingness of Syrian parties to strengthen the mutual trust with the assistance of the Astana guarantors. It also reaffirmed the determination of the Astana guarantors to increase and expand their cooperation within the Working Group.
Took note with appreciation the participation of delegations of Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon as observers of the Astana format as well as representatives of the United Nations and the ICRC;
Expressed their sincere gratitude to the Kazakh authorities for hosting in Nur-Sultan the 16th International Meeting on Syria in the Astana format;
Decided to convene the 17th International Meeting on Syria in the Astana format in Nur-Sultan before the end of 2021 taking into consideration the pandemic situation. Also recalled the Joint Statement of 1 July 2020 to hold the next Tripartite Summit in the Islamic Republic of Iran as soon as conditions permit.
Meanwhile, the Western MSM continues to ignore the reality of Iran’s integration into the Russian sphere of influence – or however you want to describe the realities on the ground.
America’s aim is to dissect all countries that try to oppose her: USSR, Yugoslavia, ČSSR and now Syria. The smaller the country gets, the better it can be controlled – the old concept of ‘divide et impera’. We know that even after USSR collapsed, Washington tried to break apart Russia (Chechnya wars, Georgian aggressions, etc) also they are interested in the independence of Tatarstan, the Kuril islands, etc, etc.
For Washington it wasn’t enough to destroy Yugoslavia, Washington continued by destruction of Serbia-Montenegro, then breaking Kosovo away from Serbia, etc. the big question in Washington is: how small can the Balkans be fragmented?
BUT if an independence movement is against Washingtons interests, they strongly appose it (Catalunya, Transnistria, South Tyrol, Scotland, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Artsakh, Donetsk, Lugansk, etc). Suddenly independence movenents are ‘bad’.
Long story short: Washington doesn’t like Syria, neither her president, Mr Assad – because they are so-called ‘pro-Russian’ a.k.a. anti-imperialist. Luckily Syria has stong allies that defend her against the Empire’s aggressions…
Is there anything here besides talk? Any Syrian experts on this website, who can comment on whether any of this will actually happen?
You know it’s just talk when Turkey — of all countries — “reaffirms” its “strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic”!
@corvo –I feel exactly as you do -on reading this article & what sounds like BS re Turkey. From what I’ve been reading in MSM the Turks have been totally bad news for Syria. What’s really going on – on the ground?
Turkey just has its own plans. See the history about imperator Osman’s I dream, where a tree raised up from his belly button, casting a cloud over the whole world. This as sign of Turkey’s idea and will to rule the whole world:
https://m.harunyahya.com/tr/Towards-Turkish-Islamic-Union/20126/Turkey-will-be-the-leader-of-the-Islamic-world,
https://m.harunyahya.com/tr/Towards-Turkish-Islamic-Union/28966/A-new-world-order-by-Turkeys-Leadership,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turanism
This is how I read the Joint Statement:
This: Reviewed in detail the situation in the Idlib de-escalation area and highlighted the necessity to maintain calm on the ground by fully implementing all agreements on Idlib;
does not deal with this: Expressed serious concern with the increased presence and terrorist activity of “Hayat Tahrir al‑Sham” and other affiliated terrorist groups as designated by the UN Security Council that pose threat to civilians inside and outside the Idlib de-escalation area;
or deal with this: Agreed to continue their cooperation in order to ultimately eliminate DAESH/ISIL, Al-Nusra Front and all other individuals, groups, undertakings and entities associated with Al-Qaeda or DAESH/ISIL, and other terrorist groups, as designated by the UN Security Council, while ensuring the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure in accordance with international humanitarian law.
All of which is in reverse order in this joint statement. Cart before the horse.
Which explains why Idlib is in its third year of conflict.
The original plan was to put all the AQ and ISIS and rebels who wanted to continue to fight in one place and then finish them off there.
That got stopped by Turkey.
There is no way Idlib can be allowed to be a home for 50,000+ Sunni radicals and 8,000 Uyghur Islamists.
Additionally in the Joint Statement: Condemned continuing Israeli military attacks in Syria which violate the international law, international humanitarian law, the sovereignty of Syria and neighboring countries, endanger the stability and security in the region and called for cessation of them;
This requires a NO FLY ZONE enforced with an additional S-400 system and Pantsirs to close the air space over all Syria, and Russia informing the world that Lebanon and the coastal East Med is ADIZ for combat planes. The Israelis can no longer be allowed to roam the skies of the ME and fire missiles and guided bombs on anyone they choose. And the US must be eliminated from air operations in Syrian airspace.
So they all agreed to solve the Syrian problem by issuing a statement. Meanwhile 7,000,000 Syrians are refugees, and terrorists and their sponsors (Turkey, Qatar, Israel, US, UK and France) carry on the war and destruction of Syria. Theft of oil is not discussed. But it impoverishes the Syrian people massively.
Finally: Expressed their conviction that there could be no military solution to the Syrian conflict and reaffirmed their commitment to advance viable and lasting Syrian-led and Syrian-owned, UN-facilitated political process in line with the UN Security Council Resolution 2254;
So, while the fight against terrorism is kinetic, they consider the Syrian Conflict is political. So watch how they talk about that difference.
There will be reactive combat operations against terrorists while negotiations are offered to anti-Assad rebels.
However, ten years has taught us that the rebels will never agree to a political solution while there are guns and money available for their resistance. Particularly, the rebels in the southwest, near Jordan, have gone in and out of agreements over and over. They have huge encouragement from the US and Israel who used them from the start to fight Assad.
Too many powerful enemies have hooks into the Syrian nation. Those enemies intend to continue to pull on those hooks until they shred the body of Syria.
Facts on the ground determine negotiations and diplomatic solutions. All the facts continue to show Syria has been partitioned into ungovernable interest zones.
How does this get resolved if not with military operations to change the facts in favor of the Syrian government and vast majority of the Syrian people?
Larchmonter wrote:
How does this get resolved if not with military operations to change the facts in favor of the Syrian government and vast majority of the Syrian people?
My opinion … is that Russia (Putin, Lavrov et al) is waiting for the West to become unable to fight or to support jihadis due to worsening economic/fossil fuel situation. In otherwords, during the next debt bubble collapse, exacerbated by (or exacerbating) a fossil fuel collapse, Syrian and Russian military can enter Idlib with less resistance.
It is easier to negotiate with someone if they are starving.
What right does Turkey have to participate in such joint statements when they’re actively supporting the terrorists in Idlib?
Precisely. Turkey blatantly lies about Syrian territorial integrity. Why do Iran and Russia put up with being lied to—openly?
Turkey has no right but it does have control of the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. Russia could crush Turkey if it seriously misbehaved, but it is more cost effective to go through the motions of including Turkey in the diplomatic process.
Russia and Iran take the long view; the current regime in Turkey is but a microblip on the radar of history. Nothing Russia has done, or will do, could be used in a court of law against it, and in the court of world opinion, the only facts against Russia are those the West produces out of thin air.
Russia has a no fly zone over most of Syria, regardless of what one might consider, otherwise Russian bases would be wide open to air attack by planes….yet Syria is not attacked by planes over it’s territory, these planes fly in the ‘free fly zones’ that surround Syria, they fire missiles into Syria from safe third country air space so no amount of air cover over Syria will change anything………unless Mr Putin gets the new PM of Occupied Palestine to grovel on his knees in front of him………….Putin wouldn’t do a Biden, would he????
Cheers, M
From what i remember it wasn’t Turkey that stopped the terrorists in Idlib being annihilated,it was Russia halting the SAA advance and trying to reason with the Turks with a ceasefire,how is that working out?
Aside from your memory being exactly wrong, well . . . The Turks put their own troops into the defense along Highway M4. Their proxies and terrorists (SNA and al Nusra) couldn’t handle the SAA. Then the Turks had many clashes with SAA forces keeping them from advancing in Idlib. Finally, the Russians actually hit a contingent of regular Turk troops with an air attack.That changed the resolve of the Turks (Erdogan). It was a quite large and deadly bombing attack by the Russian VSK on the regular Turk army.
Those are the facts, but Englishman it escaped your ‘hard drive’.
The Russian so impacted Turk military that Putin forced joint patrols on the Turk military in order to enforce the agreement regarding M4 and the zones that the SAA would be taking.
It didn’t impact anything,it was Russia that halted the SAA ffom advancing on Idlib with that stupid ceasefire,since then more people have died that didn’t need to,once those turks had been bombed by the Russians why did the SAA advance halt and the deal was done with the invading Turks?,the reality is the terrorists are stronger now in Idlib than they were.
https://southfront.org/hayat-tahrir-al-sham-solidifies-its-rule-over-greater-idlib-by-forming-another-brigade/
Erdogan and Turkey will not rest until they manage to recreate the expanded Ottoman empire (all Turkmen): from the Balkans to the border with China and from Siberia to the Arabian Sea. And without making a value judgment about it. (We all do the same when we get a chance, right?)
Therefore, not even Russia, China, Iran and Syria will be able to lower their guard for long, until that is resolved (and then another will come).
The human being has evolved technologically (his arm of adaptation to the environment), but not spiritually: he is the same as hundreds of thousands of years ago.
For Christians it will be resolved with the 2nd coming of Christ. The rest are doomed to slide down the “Gaussian bell” over and over again.
Only idiot can trust Turks and Erdogan.
Turks are still in Idlib region and they will not leave Syria peacefully.
I do not understand why Russia let them be there.
Turkstream, S400, VVER1000 times X, Constantinople, tourism, black sea entrance, Russian money in Turkish Cyprus to name a few.
Someone once said that diplomacy is the art of saying “nice doggie” until you find a suitable rock.
Thanks for posting this. One wonders if any possible improvement re Iraq v USA situation could lead to Iraq assisting to sorting out the USA presence and illegal smuggling between north east Syria via the illegal al Walid crossing. Turkey has made a couple of incursions into Iraq(incursions seems to be M.O.) and perhaps then could relations between the two if settled might help Syria. All seems uncertain however?
Just another talk shop once again.
Turkey and it’s terroristic “helpers” are still in Idlib, causing hell. Syrian oil and wheat (when country is starving!) is still being stolen by the usual criminals from “The Land of Imbecils”. Illegal unilateral sanctions imposed by EU, in total contradiction to international law, humanitarian law and UN Charter, sanctions which are crippling already devastated country, are still there. Nothing is being done to stop all that blatant criminality.
Russia and Iran, together and with their allies in the area, should start whipping some other shity arses there a bit more meaningfully – and not just Islamic terrorists. What USA is doing there with their looting and thiefery, what the rest of the West is doing there with their criminal sanctions, what Israhell is doing there with their constant bombing raids – they are ALL terrorists. And the deluded Turk should have been shown the door out of Syria long ago. Time to put foot down and firmly! Get that place cleared once and for all of all these rats that infested it..
All True Sister Katerina.
The valiant work of Iranian supported groups in Syria, Iraq and Yemen should embolden Russia to declare that any illegal occupant in those countries are a target. You have 14 days to GTFO or we carpet bomb all foreign liberated/stolen assets inside those countries.
Yes, Katerina, I agree with you. The absolute atrocity of the sanctions on the Syrian people. Why can’t Russia and China with others that state they are illegal sanctions,why can’t they break them? Why can’t they provide fuel, food and medical supplies? What would stop their transport ships from delivering the aid?
Because the Sultan of Swing has the biggest pair of eggs on the Planet, he has sissy-slapped Trump, Merkel & the EU.. Has an ice-cream in Moscow one day, and shoots down a Russian fighter-jet the next.. Now has his eye on Kabul’s recently vacated Bagram Palace..
Nobody will ever know, but what arrangement do you think Mr Putin has with Him?
eddie
Deluded Turk might have great ambitions, with an ego to match, but ask yourself – has he really succeeded in any of his grandiose plans? The answer, I would say, is definitely “not”. No luck in meddling in Libya, turned Idlib into a mess, and there soon will be a reckoning for him for doing that – that was NOT the agreement he negotiated with VVP. Got the door shut in the face in Nagorny-Karabakh when he tried to stick his nose in there. He will have exact same thing done to him if he tries to meddle in Afghanistan – now that imbeciles have been kicked out, there will be much bigger players involved in there, believe me. Taliban cannot exist in stone age forever, there will be changes and soon. Erdogan’s leverage with EU is wearing out thin, the people he used to blackmail there (EU quislings, after all) will be replaced in not too distant future. Supply of ransom money he used to extort from EU might just dry out. His economy is tanking, inflation, very likely, is also not far away. The huge expenditure that he recently announced, building this Istanbul Canal is another ego trip for him that might completely bankrupt the country if it goes ahead. There are lots of people in Turkey itself that are not that happy with him, to put it mildly. He cannot imprison them all. It is only a matter of time. So, I would say that we shouldn’t worry much about him and his big plans, I believe VVP has got his measure long ago. Besides, any funny business with Bosphorus Strait will see Istanbul under water, instantly! Turk knows that.
P.S. By the way, he paid a very heavy price for shooting down Russian fighter jet, and then, practically on his knees begged VVP to forgive him. Here Turk is not dealing with the spineless EU garbage.
Russian President has got lots of levers for this wannabe sultan. Make no mistake.
In response to Katerina,
You’re absolutely right. People sometimes fail to look at things in the long run, something which the Russians are perfect at. Putin and his team know very well that Erdogan is just a nuisance that will eventually leave. Why carpet bomb Turkish soldiers and destroy any future chance of cooperation when Erdogan is gone? Even when Russia bombed them in Idlib, it didn’t officially say so. It was to get them in check. The Idlib issue is very frustrating but honestly it isn’t the main priority right now. The priority is getting Syria back into the Arab league, finding a way to beat the sanctions, stop the theft of oil and wheat. There are many powerful countries involved in Syria albeit illegal, tact and long run initiatives are the best solution except ofcourse the people make it uninhabitable for them (looking at the Kurds).
I reckon there is some sort of understanding down the line between Turkey and the ‘good guys’ (Syria, Russia, Iran). For the time being, things have to stay the way they are. Even Erdogan, despite his delusions, has to be aware of where the wind is blowing from.
I’ve been following Syrian situation from the beginning. My heart aches. Hope the end is near.
I will make an optimistic prediction and assume the alliance is preparing for a fall offensive. The major obstacles right now include:
*Lack of infantry required to control territory (will Hezbollah and Iran fill in these gaps?)
*Syria’s lack of heavy equipment; in fact, shortage of all resources
*Russia currently must conserve its strength to secure its Southwest against NATO. (Whatever we may think about the quality of NATO’s units, the primary mission of Russia’s military is to secure its borders, not Syrian borders.)
It would be fantastic if Syria gets liberated tomorrow, but we must be patient until then.
Implementation of international law is a stake pointing to the heart of a zionist vampire.
Still waiting for volunteer to strike stake with large enough hammer…
I agree with Anna: Implementation of International Law is the heart of President Putin’s diplomacy. Larchmonter and Katerina remind us: the arm of Putin’s diplomacy in Syria is Russia’s military prowess. This joint statement is a call to order.
“Speak softly and carry a big stick” — Teddy Roosevelt, POTU$
The UN can go rot, the sooner this bankrupt entity, who like a junkie sells its soul to the highest bidder is replaced the better.
Turkey (The Sultans of Swing ) support HTS.
Russia has a huge puss filled sore on its back called the Zionist 5th Column.
Iran is doing the majority of the heavy lifting, sacrificing young lives.
Regarding the use of the Caesar Act as threats against Gulfies and others who engage with Syria is not surprising, is there any country that has not been threatened? The US are using blackmail and violence in occupying Syria and Iraq illegally not forgetting the money for all oil sales the US forced the Iraqis to deposit in US banks and which Trump threatened to close down if the US were told to leave..https://www.defenseworld.net/news/26166/Iraq_Fears__35B_Oil_Revenue_Freeze_if_it_Expels_US_Troops#.YNpSYn4opo There is no law the US are not prepared to break, especially International law, the Russians and Chinese are now realizing this and are, some might say belatedly confronting this reality in the Ukraine [“we will bomb the next ship illegally entering Russian territory”] There is only one language the US understands and it was used successfully the first time Iraq was invaded, the US must be driven out, and they will be.
What drove the US occupiers out of Iraq the first time was a simple device called an explosively formed projectile [EFP] it consisted of a steel pipe [or even a piece of PVC waste pipe packed with high explosive with a disc of copper at the end, this was placed at the side of roads frequented by US army patrols, they could easily be disguised as rocks or other common features of the landscape, Initially they were set off by electronic means i.e. a cell phone, garage door openers or other such device. The US spent billions and asked Government research laboratories and universities to counter this phenomenon, they succeeded at first when convoys were headed by a vehicle bristling with antennae, the Iraqis were one step ahead of them, they started using a long piece of string to detonate the EFP, game over. An EFP can destroy the latest tanks, penetrate from one side to the other killing the unfortunate crispy critters inside, on detonation the disk is propelled thus…. EFP 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter can throw a 3 kg (7 lbs) copper slug at Mach 6, or 2,000 meters per second . These devices are easy to build and impossible to defend against. Add into the mix the right of these Syrian and Iraq groups to legally defend their sovereignty with the proliferation of rockets these groups have at their disposal. By the way, these “so called Iranian backed groups” are a legitimate part of the Iraqi armed forces, so the US are waging war on Iraq just as they are on Syria and an economic war on Iran and Lebanon.
Chicken come home, eh? “1880s by an American inventor, Charles E. Munroe. Munroe found that a hollow cone of explosive material, when detonated with its open end a few inches from metal plate, produced a jet of white-hot gases and molten steel that could penetrate many inches of the best armour.” Encyclopedia Britannica
Also Swiss fella> Henry Hans Mohaupt
And yes. Devastating devices.
US physicist Ted Taylor let it be known that a nuclear shaped charge is “do-able”, and useful for blasting a very nice hole, or directing at distance jet to push space-ship (Project Orion in the 1960’s) The data on this is classified, but it’s a slamdunk that the Russians and the Chinese know more about it than the fascist cryptonazi beast.
So, if I understand correctly, the premise is:
1. Putin and Xi have the best data on the planet.
2. Their data is so accurate and unequivocal that it overrides all other data.
If their data concerns matters of life and death for everyone on the planet. It is incumbent on them to set up a panel or a tribunal, if you will, that will make fully public all data they hold. Maybe a tribunal under the auspices of the SCO and EAEU and other security and economic umbrella groups, at, say, the university in Novosibirsk or one of the universities in Chengdu.
Make all data public, the good, the bad, and the extremely ugly. Any politicians who refuse full disclosure in matters of life and death for all humanity is not only morally wrong, they are just that, politicians.