Geneva’s meeting outcomes agree to solve Syrian crisis
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Final statement of Geneva meeting called on Thursday for finding a political solution for the Syrian crisis, concentrating on several issues including refugees, UN aid, and war against the Islamic State Organization (ISIS).
Representatives of Arab League, Egypt, the European Union, France, Germany, Iraq, Jordan, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States met in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the Syrian crisis On August 30-31.
In a media note, the US Department of State said the representatives stressed the importance of finding a political solution for Syrian crisis in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254.
They stressed that “there is no military solution for the Syrian crisis.”
The importance of implementing and sustaining an immediate nation-wide ceasefire, holding free and fair elections, ending arbitrary detention, and releasing all those unjustly arrested were among the issues tackled during the meeting.
The outcomes of the meeting also stressed the need that Syrian refugees and IDPs should return to their areas in line with UNHCR standards.
They [representatives] also mentioned that they are aware of threats imposed by Islamic State Organization (ISIS), and renewed their support to US-led Global coalition to defeat ISIS missions.
The note also included that all parties should resume meetings of the Syrian-led and Syrian-owned Constitutional Committee under UN auspices in Geneva, advance an inclusive political solution that protects “the territorial integrity, unity, and sovereignty of Syria and the rights and dignity of all Syrians.”
The representatives also expressed their concern “about the dire humanitarian situation in Syria and the ongoing suffering of the Syrian people.”
In addition, they confirmed the importance of sending humanitarian aid to all parts of Syria through all ways, “including expansion and extension of the UNSC resolution 2642 cross-border aid mechanism.”
On July 12, the UN Security Council approved to extend lifesaving aid deliveries into northwest Syria through Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey for a further six months.
In July 2014, the UN Security Council adopted the Resolution 2165 which authorized the UN to deliver cross-border humanitarian aid to Syria through four crossings al-Ramtha crossing with Jordan, Bab al-Salam, Bab al-Hawa with Turkey, and al Ya’rubiyah (Tel Kocher) with Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), without the consent of the Syrian government.
Finally, the representatives stressed on the necessity of “holding perpetrators responsible for all atrocities and international crimes that took place in Syria, including the usage of chemical weapons.”
Earlier, United States Permanent Representative to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) Ambassador Joseph Manso said that his country believes “the Syrian regime” has used chemical weapons at least 50 times during conflict in war-torn Syria.
Manso, who believes that the government still possesses a stockpile of the chemical weapons, held the Syrian government responsible for curbing the work of the OPCW in Syria.