Lavrov: US and Western sanctions against Syria must be lifted

Moscow, SANA-Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov affirmed that the unilateral coercive economic measures imposed by the US and its Western allies on Syria have caused the suffering of its people.

“The sanctions against Syria are unacceptable and must be lifted, and the West’s talk that they do not affect the Syrian people is a lie, as they are the cause of their suffering”, Lavrov said, in response to a question by SANA reporter during a press conference about the outcome of Russian diplomacy in 2022 in Moscow Wednesday.

He added that the United States and its Western allies use sanctions to destabilize the countries imposed on them and change their governments to serve their interests.

Lavrov pointed to the need to provide humanitarian aid to those in need in Syria, away from any politicization, referring that, based on United Nations standards, the volume of humanitarian aid that reaches Syria is small, as it is almost half of what is required, which is the worst rate compared to all humanitarian programs.

He indicated to the importance of rebuilding the infrastructure and reviving the economy in Syria, and the need to implement Security Council resolutions in this regard, pointing out that despite the United States’ support for these resolutions, after two years we do not see much progress in this field, which must be resolved by the UN more effectively.

Lavrov clarified that the West does not want the Syrian refugees to return to their cities and villages, to serve its political agendas, and this is completely unacceptable, and it must deal with these issues based on facts, not geopolitical illusions.

The Minister said that the United States used its military forces, violated the U N Charter, and interfered in the lands of others more than 300 times after the Cold War, and bombed Libya and Iraq for false targets, and illegally intervened in Syria, and the “international coalition” under its leadership destroyed the entire city of Raqqa, Thousands of Syrians were killed, while the international community remained silent .

“Turkey has requested Russia’s help for rapprochement with Syria, and that preparations are underway for a meeting of the foreign ministers of Syria and Turkey in the future “, Lavrov added.

Bushra Dabin/MHD Ibrahim