Merve Gül Aydoğan Ağlarcı
September 18, 2025•Update: September 18, 2025
HAMILTON, Canada
Türkiye's UN envoy Ahmet Yildiz on Thursday praised Syria's recent "remarkable progress," stressing that Israeli policies are fueling instability in the region.
"The Syrian government has made remarkable progress since last December, despite the scale of challenges. Rehabilitation projects in infrastructure are already underway, and access to electricity in the country has improved," Yildiz told the UN Security Council during a session on Syria.
He underlined that “the reconstruction process will only accelerate once all natural resources come under the control of the Syrian government for the benefit of the old Syrian people."
Highlighting the importance of Syria's re-engagement with the world, Yildiz said: "We are encouraged to observe that Syria's engagement with the international community is advancing on a steady and constructive path. Participation of the Syrian president in the UN General Assembly during high-level weeks will be of enormous importance in reinforcing this engagement."
He expressed Türkiye's continued support for the lifting of all sanctions for Syria's reconstruction efforts.
"The new period in Syria requires sustained efforts to ensure peace and stability on the basis of its territorial integrity and unity," he said, emphasizing that "stability is also key to preventing wider security risks."
"It is also essential for Israel to reconsider its policy of aggression, of keeping Syria weak and fragmented, and recognize that serious stability also serves the security of all in the region," he said.
Yildiz pointed to the March 10 agreement between the Syrian government and the terrorist organization SDF, noting that the "SDF continues to take more time and has shown more interest in the united future for Syria."
"Ideas and initiatives that carry the risk of fragmentation are not acceptable," he stressed.
On March 10, the Syrian presidency announced the signing of an agreement for the integration of SDF into state institutions, reaffirming the country's territorial unity and rejecting any attempts at division.
The SDF is dominated by the terrorist group YPG, the Syrian branch of the terrorist PKK.
The Syrian government has been intensifying security efforts since last year's ouster of Bashar al-Assad after 24 years in power.
Assad, Syria's leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia in December, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963. A new transitional administration led by President Ahmad Al-Sharaa was formed in January.
Israel has launched strikes on military sites and assets across Syria since then, and has expanded its occupation of the Syrian Golan Heights by seizing the demilitarized buffer zone. Talks between Israel and Syria are underway aimed at halting the aggressive actions and reach a security deal.
