Syria’s FM Al-Moallem: US Presence Illegal, It Must Leave

Local Editor

Syria’s Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem reaffirmed that the US presence on the Syrian territory is illegal and is considered as an aggression that must leave.

In an interview with RT broadcaster, al-Moallem said that the Americans in the al-Tanf area are attracting Daesh [the Arabic acronym for terrorist ISIS/ISIL group] remnants and are rehabilitating them in order to send them back to fight the Syrian Arab Army because they want to prolong the crisis in Syria for the benefit of the Zionist entity.

He further stressed that the Syrian-Iranian relations are not negotiable.

“The presence of Iranian advisers in Syria is legitimate and came at the request of the Syrian state, contrary to the US presence, which is an aggression against Syria which must leave,” al-Moallem said.

Commenting on Idlib agreement, al-Moallem said that the agreement is a positive step to extend the control of the Syrian state over all of its territory, indicating that the agreement provides the conditions for a peaceful solution in Idlib through reconciliation whose effectiveness has been demonstrated in many Syrian areas.

He stressed that the legitimate state has the right to use other means to reestablish sovereignty over its territory.

“When you go from one city to another and want to go back you use the same road to return,” he said, noting that terrorists in Idlib had come across Turkey and are leaving through it.

“The danger now in the eastern region stems from the American factor that is illegally present, which is providing military support for the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces in that region as the US presence hampers these forces’ dialogue with the Syrian state. Some of them attacked the Syrian soldiers there in an unjustified attack, and those who mounted the attack must pay the price,” al-Moallem stated.

“Damascus is committed to the platforms of Astana and Sochi and to the efforts of the Russian Federation and the Islamic Republic of Iran to find an appropriate solution that will serve the Syrian people in the political process,” he said.

He further noted that the work of UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura “is not neutral”.

“If he were neutral, we would find ourselves before an active constitutional committee, and the reason for that is the existence of a mini-international group that has a negative impact on the Envoy’s work,” al-Moallem added.

Source: SANA, Edited by website team