President Bashar al-Assad stressed that eliminating terrorism demands first and foremost confronting the takfiri thinking that is being exported by some countries.
Meeting a visiting Russian parliamentary delegation headed by Ilyas Umakhanov, the deputy chairman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of Russian Federation, the president added that routing terrorism also requires "putting actual pressure on the parties that are involved in funding and arming the terrorists and facilitating their passage".
“All of that needs serious efforts and not in the form of propaganda or grandstanding,” Assad said.
He expressed the Syrian people’s appreciation of Russia’s principled policies in support of the stability, sovereignty and independence of states, and highlighted the significance that coordination between Syria and Russia continue on all levels, particularly at a parliamentary level, with the aim of “countering terrorism and the takfiri thoughts that are alien to our societies".
The Russian delegation reaffirmed Russia's commitment to continuing to support the Syrian people and bolstering their steadfastness in the face of the terrorist war targeting them.
Syria, it stressed, is “the major front in combating international terrorism and the extremist mentality,” stating that these phenomena are posing a threat not only to Syria but to Russia and other countries that are characterized by cultural heritage, diversity and co-existence."
The delegation members made it clear that Russia’s firm attitude in support of Syria stems not only from the historical ties binding the people of both countries, but also from that fact that Russia builds its policies on the basis of its commitment to international laws and the necessity of respecting the sovereignty of states.
Russia is fully aware of the reality of what is taking place in Syria as it was one of the first countries to have suffered from terrorism, they said.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Speaker of the People’s Assembly Fahmi Hassan.
President Assad stressed during a meeting with a Russian governmental delegation on May 24 the key role which Russia plays in maintaining stability in the world and standing in the face of the West’s attempts to impose hegemony on the region’s countries.
Translated and edited by The Syrian Observer
...
