Syria rejects Turkish regime’s attempts to depict itself as the victim when its support for terrorism is known

Jul 29, 2015, SANA

The Syrian Foreign and Expatriates Ministry said that the Turkish government directly responsible for the shedding of Syrian blood, calling on the Security Council and the UN to compel states to comply with counterterrorism resolutions, and stressing that eliminating terrorism requires a binding group effort.

In two identical letters sent to the UN Secretary-General and the head of the Security Council, the Ministry said that throughout more than four years of the crisis in Syria, Turkey hasn’t ceased to conspire against Syria by supporting terrorists that came from more than 100 countries through Turkey to join ISIS, Jabhat al-Nusra, Ahrar al-Cham, and other Al Qaeda-affiliated organizations.

The letters noted that the Syrian government has sent many letters to the head of the Security Council and the UN Secretary-General documenting the Turkish plotting against Syria.

The Ministry said that the Syrian Arab Republic government rejects the attempts by the Turkish regime to depict itself as the victim and that it is defending itself while everyone is aware of what this regime has done in terms of providing all forms of support to terrorist organizations, violating relevant Security Council resolutions, particularly resolutions no. 2170 and no. 2178 for 2014 and no. 2199 for 2015.

The Ministry cited the example of how ISIS is stealing petroleum, wheat, cotton, and archeological artifacts from Syria and selling them in Turkey with the full knowledge of the Turkish regime in exchange for providing it with weapons, ammunition, and logistic support for their members in Syria, not to mention dismantling and stealing machinery from hundreds of Syrian factories and transporting to Turkey.

The letters went on to say that Turkey also continued to train and arm terrorists from Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist organizations affiliated to Al Qaeda, assisting them with artillery and rocket fire when they entered Idleb province under the name of “Al-Fateh Army.”

The Ministry stressed that the Turkish government is directly responsible for the shedding of Syrian blood and the humanitarian suffering of millions of Syrians inside and outside Syria as a result of the Turkish government’s support for terrorism.

The letters asserted that if Turkey and other neighboring countries had complied with the Security Council’s counterterrorism laws, 70% of the elements of the crisis in Syria would have been bypassed.

The Ministry also noted that Article 51 of the UN Charter gives Syria the right to defend its people and land from border-crossing terrorism that receives support from the Turkish regime and other regional states, and therefore the Turkish regime has no right to use Article 51 as it is in fact the one that export the terrorism in question.

The letters said that Syria has been fighting terrorists from over 70 extremist organizations that are funded, armed, and trained by regional and international sides, first among being Turkey, noting that statements by U.S. military officials confirm the existence of training camps for terrorists in several countries in the region under the pretense of them being “moderate opposition.”

The Ministry refuted the allegations of the letter sent by Turkey to the UN Secretary-General and the head of the Security Council and asserted that the Syrian Army and Armed Forces are fighting ISIS and al-Nusra across Syria, while journalists have published photos of Turkish soldiers exchanging pleasantries with ISIS personnel on the borders between the two countries.

The letters noted that Syria had often warned that terrorism knows no homeland or religion or borders, and warned its supporters that it will eventually backfire on them, adding that if Turkey now, after over four years of the crisis in Syria, is feeling that it is its duty to confront terrorism, then the idiom “better late than never” applies to it, but the Ministry questioned the honesty of the Turkish intentions and whether they are pretexts to attack Kurds in Syria and Iraq or maybe if they have ulterior internal goals.

The Ministry asserted Syria’s commitment to combating terrorism, calling on the Security Council and the UN Secretary-General to compel states to comply with counterterrorism resolutions and to take steps against the states that support terrorist organizations like ISIS and al-Nusra.

The letters were concluded by reiterating Syria’s affirmation that eliminating terrorism completely requires a group effort that is binding on the regional and international levels and that is based on constructive cooperation and respecting the sovereignty of states and the interests of their people.