Turkish envoy to UN says terrorism has become 'greatest threat' to Syria's political unity

WASHINGTON

Türkiye's permanent representative to the UN said Thursday that terrorism has become the greatest threat to Syria’s political unity and territorial integrity as well as to regional peace and stability.

"The current stalemate is unsustainable for Syria, and it is unsustainable for the wider region," Sedat Onal said during a UN Security Council session on the political and humanitarian situation in Syria.

"Therefore, it is high time for a realistic stocktaking by all relevant actors," he added.

"The essential requirement for a sustainable solution to the Syrian crisis is to achieve a national consensus in line with the expectations of the Syrian people," he said. "This requires all stakeholders to review their positions and make paradigm shifts where necessary in order to contribute to lasting peace and stability."

Onal said a change of attitude is needed particularly in three critical issues, with a review of the Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process under UN facilitation being the first.

Second, according to Onal, is the "mistake" of sub-contracting the fight against Daesh/ISIS to another terrorist organization, the PKK/YPG, which was later rebranded as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

"This separatist entity is neither Syrian nor democratic; it is nothing but the PKK/YPG itself," he said.

Onal added that sequential approaches that condition the return of refugees to advances in the political process have not brought the desired results so far.

"Creating the necessary conditions for the voluntary, safe and dignified return of Syrian refugees must be a part and parcel of the settlement process now," he added.