US State Dep. urges 'political settlement' in Syria

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen
7 Dec 2024 03:06

The US State Department reaffirmed that HTS is a terror organization, while urging a political settlement.

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The sign used as the backdrop for press briefings at the US Department of State is seen before a news conference at the State Department in Washington, the United States, on August 10, 2006. (AP)

A spokesperson for the United States Department of State said on Friday that it is time to negotiate and end to the conflict in Syria via the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolution 2254, which calls for a political settlement.

The spokesperson also said that Washignton continues to urge its allies and partners to protect civilians, including minorities in Syria, describing Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) as a foreign terror organization.

Meanwhile, Syria, Iran, and Iraq, represented by their foreign ministers, held a press conference in Baghdad, following a scheduled tripartite meeting, primarily to discuss the recent crisis in Syria.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein announced that Iraq plans to summon a number of countries to discuss the Syrian conflict, affirming that efforts with his Iranian and Syrian counterparts continue to organize and cooperate on diplomatic initiatives regarding the matter.

The presser also saw Hussein announcing that Iraq would call for a League of Arab States ministerial meeting, declaring that all diplomatic efforts would be activated to resolve the Syrian crisis.

The Turkish, Saudi, Jordanian, Emirati, and Egyptian foreign ministers were also contacted, according to Hussein, to reach compromises with these countries' representatives, some of whom are members of the Astana process.

For his part, Bassam al-Sabbagh, Syria's foreign minister, outlined the aspects of regional and international intervention in what is happening in Syria, stressing that they are "exposed and transparent," and further warned that they aim to create a new division in the region and redraw its political map."

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbass Araghchi confirmed that the primary objective of the meeting was to "support Syria, its government and people, in confronting terrorist groups."

Araghchi expanded, saying the meeting aimed at reiterating that threats of armed groups would not be confined to Syria, but would impact all countries in the region. "If we want to protect our security, we must defend the security of neighboring countries and help confront the phenomenon of terrorism," he declared.