Moscow and Damascus have decided to go on the offensive in their statements marking the 10th anniversary of civil war in Syria. Last year Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that all-out military operations were concluded. This means that the West and Russia, which support opposing sides of the conflict in Syria, will be taking their dispute to the domain of political statements.
For the last decade, the US and its allies have released several statements that gradually acknowledged “new realities” rising in a Syria that has been forgotten by Washington.
This year, however, statements put out by the Russian and Syrian governments stood out in terms of rushing to claim certain facts about the war in the Levantine country.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry released an official statement that was published on the state-controlled Russia Today (RT) website and that traced the Syrian crisis back to anti-government protests erupting in 2011.
“Due to outside interference, the domestic political process rapidly turned into an armed conflict, in which illegal armed groups moved to the fore. The country was subjected to unprecedented aggression by international terrorism,” read the statement.
Instead of addressing Russia’s military intervention in September 2015, the statement focused on Moscow’s role in combating ISIS. It credited Russia for its “decisive contribution” to the fight against the international terrorist group despite Russian military operations in Syria only recently turning their attention to targeting ISIS.
“Owing to Russia’s decisive contribution, ISIS was defeated and irreparable damage was done to other international terrorist groups. As a result of the concerted efforts of the Astana format partners – Russia, Iran and Turkey – a sustainable ceasefire is ensured in the larger part of Syrian territory,” said the statement.
“At the same time, there are still isolated hotbeds of tension in Idlib, where the terrorists of Jabhat al-Nusra and its allied gangs have entrenched themselves, as well as in the areas with an illegal US military presence – east of the Euphrates and At-Tanf,” it added without mentioning Israeli airstrikes and Turkish and Iranian military presence in Syria.
The ministry blamed “anti-Syrian forces” for using unilateral restrictions to block external aid and create obstacles for the return of refugees and IDPs to regime-controlled territories.
“In the process, the selective assistance rendered by the Western countries to their clients in Syria, can only perpetuate the existing dividing lines in Syrian society and stimulate separatist attitudes in the areas that are being artificially isolated today,” it warned.
Nevertheless, the ministry reiterated Russia’s support for the political track in Syria.
“We are firmly convinced that there cannot be a military solution to it. We are committed to a political process led and implemented by the Syrians themselves in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254,” said the statement.
It is worth noting that the statement released by the Syrian Foreign Ministry did not echo Russia’s argument on the need for national reconciliation and the return of refugees.
The regime, in the ministry’s statement, blamed civil unrest metastasizing into war on foreign countries stepping in and sending hordes of mercenaries to fight its army, then going on to establish military presence in Syria.
On the other hand, the US and its allies in their statements marking a decade of conflict in Syria focused more on rebuilding the country without using phrases like “political transition” or “President Bashar al-Assad stepping down.” It also tackled upcoming presidential elections and discussed a support mechanism for constitutional reform in Syria.
“Today marks ten years since the Syrian people peacefully took to the streets calling for reform. The Assad regime’s response has been one of appalling violence. President Assad and his backers bear responsibility for the years of war and human suffering that followed,” read a joint statement by the US Secretary of State, the UK Foreign Secretary, and the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany, and Italy.
“Continued conflict has also led to space for terrorists, particularly ISIS, to exploit. Preventing ISIS’ resurgence remains a priority,” it warned.
“The proposed Syrian Presidential election this year will neither be free nor fair, nor should it lead to any measure of international normalization with the Syrian regime,” the ministers reaffirmed, adding that “any political process needs the participation of all Syrians, including the diaspora and the displaced, to enable all voices to be heard.”
