Syria making no concessions for peace - French Ambassador


The Syrian government is making no concessions for peace and has intensified attacks against oppositions groups with the support of Russia.

That's according to the French Ambassador to the United Nations.

Peace talks in Geneva to find an end to the 5-year long civil war have been put on hold.

On Friday, a special session of the Security Council heard from the UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura.

After that closed meeting, Ambassador François Delattre had this to say.

“The presentation by Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura confirms what we already knew; the Syrian regime and its allies have made no concession; quite the contrary. On the one hand, the Syrian regime claims to discuss peace in Geneva and on the other hand, it intensifies its military offensive against opposition groups with which is supposed to discuss and imposes on the city of Aleppo an unprecedented torrent of fire, all of this with Russia’s military support.”

Vitaly Churkin, the Russian Ambassador to the UN said the Syrian regime did not cause the breakdown of the talks in Geneva.

“The opposition group which presented itself as the main participant from the opposition, in our view, did not really come to negotiate, they came to look for a pretext to walk out of the negotiations. We are disappointed that the opposition was not as representative as it is supposed to be.”

And he said Russian military action had eased the humanitarian situation.

“Some colleagues, yes, they did criticize Russia for continuing this bombing campaign with the help of which the Syrian government has been able to reconquer some ground which was taken from their control by terrorists and other opposition groups. In fact, I’d like to point out, that in the area of Aleppo, some sieges were lifted which had been there for a couple of years. So, in the process of this offensive, in a way, some humanitarian objectives have also been achieved.”

Meanwhile, the military operations around Aleppo in Syria have reportedly triggered the displacement of thousands of people.

It is estimated that up to 20,000 people have gathered at the Bab al Salam crossing on the Turkish border and another 5,000 to 10,000 people have been displaced to Azaz city.
A further 10,000 people are estimated to have been displaced to Afrin.

Here's the UN Deputy Spokesperson, Farhan Haq.
"The fighting has also disrupted major aid and supply routes from the Turkish border. Humanitarian organizations are responding to the needs of those displaced, but ongoing conflict is making access to populations in need increasingly difficult."

SOURCE: UN Radio