WASHINGTON

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday emphasized the importance of the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria.

"It's absolutely essential to achieve two things," Guterres told reporters when asked whether he thinks a federal system can be a solution for Syria or whether he thinks it is something against its territorial integrity.

“One is the unity of the Syrian state, in the respect of its sovereignty, but with the full integration of the different communities in the state of Syria, and with all communities fully respected and their rights fully respected. The second thing is the need to respect the territorial integrity of Syria.

“It is for the Syrians to solve the Syrian problem," he stressed.