On the sidelines of the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA77), Foreign Minister Faisal al-Mekdad discussed with the foreign ministers of Belarus, Laos, Nicaragua and Venezuela developments in the international arena and issues related to bilateral relations and the need to confront illegal unilateral coercive measures imposed by the West on some countries.
Mekdad and his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei agreed on the need to work to strengthen bilateral relations in various fields, especially in light of the difficulties the two countries are facing due to the illegal unilateral coercive measures imposed on their peoples by the United States of America and other Western states.
During his meeting with Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada, Minister Mekdad signed an agreement on mutual exemption from entry visas for holders of diplomatic and official passports.
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The two ministers also discussed ways to enhance relations of cooperation between the two friendly countries, including benefiting from the experiences of both countries in facing the challenges they are exposed to and developing tangible means to push these relations forward.
Minister Kommasith indicated that his country supports Syria’s resistance to any forces that seek to undermine its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, and that Syria’s determination and strength in defending this sovereignty is an example for many countries to follow.
At the conclusion of his meetings on the second day of the work of the General Assembly, Minister Mekdad met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Carlos Faria Tortosa, where the two ministers expressed their pride in the friendly relations binding the two countries leaderships and peoples.
Minister Mekdad condemned the U.S. attempts to interfere in Venezuela’s internal affairs, expressing Syria’s firm stance in supporting Venezuela in the face of these hostile US attempts and measures.
For his part, Minister Tortosa praised Syria’s steadfastness in confronting terrorism and defending its sovereignty and independence, pointing to Venezuela’s aspiration to return things to normal in Syria as soon as possible.
Mekdad discussed with his Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov, on the sidelines of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 77), the agenda of the Non-Aligned Movement.
The two Ministers affirmed the need to boost the Non-Aligned Movement‘s work concerning issues of interest to member states and to coordinate between its countries in various international forums in a way that serves the common interests of its members.
Minister Mekdad also met with Eritrean counterpart Osman Saleh Mohammed, and they discussed the challenges facing developing countries and how to unite efforts to confront these challenges, especially in light of the tense international situation caused by Western countries.
13 Countries Praise Syria
In a joint statement made at the 51st session of the Human Rights Council currently being held in Geneva on behalf of 13 like-minded States, Permanent Representative of Syria to the United Nations (UN) in Geneva Hossam El-Din Ala stated that unilateral coercive measures violate both international law and the UN Charter of the United Nations. The measures merely prolong harsh living conditions in the targeted countries and systematically violate their human rights. For these reasons, the sanctions should be lifted immediately and unconditionally.
Ala pointed out the expanded use of secondary sanctions to enforce and apply unilateral primary sanctions beyond territorial boundaries. Excessive enforcement of these sanctions compounds the negative consequences of unilateral coercive measures on human rights and contributes to expanding their scope, such that the sanctions impact entire societies.
Excessive enforcement of unilateral sanctions and banks’ risk reduction policies expose citizens of target countries to arbitrary discrimination based on their nationality. At the same time, targeted states face obstacles in fulfilling their financial obligations to the UN and other international organizations.
Ala reiterated Syria’s call on all member states to abide by their obligations under international law by urgently and unconditionally eliminating all forms of unilateral coercive measures. He also called on the international community to develop appropriate methods of accountability and fairness to address the catastrophic effects of sanctions and their enforcement procedures without further delay.
The like-minded group on whose behalf the statement was made includes Syria, Russia, China, Iran, Venezuela, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Belarus, Cuba, Bolivia, Cambodia, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, and Zimbabwe.
This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
