Syria announced it would not support any constitutional process other than what was voted on in the Syrian National Dialogue Congress held in Sochi.
Assistant Foreign Minister Ayman Sousan told journalists on Tuesday that Syria’s position is clear, adding that Damascus is not interested in any constitutional committees that are not completely Syrian in composition and chairmanship.
The missions, mandate and number of members of the constitutional committee were set in the Sochi statement, he said, adding that its members were exclusively chosen from the participants in the congress.
Sousan said that the Russian-organized peace congress did not give any authority to United Nations Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura, pointing out that the Sochi draft statement noted that decisions must be Syrian without any foreign interference.
In response to a question on how to choose and form the constitutional committee, Sousan said that the committee would be defined by 150 members, two-thirds of which would be supported by the government.
About the role of Turkey, a guarantor of the congress, Sousan said: “We as a state do not care about such things and when talking about an aggressor state that is soaked with Syrian blood as it sponsors, finances and facilitates the entry of terrorism to kill Syrians through its territory, we say go and ask the Syrian people and then you will know the appropriate response.”
He added the Syrian government rejects Turkey’s role, adding: “We do not trust Turkey… It is not reliable to us.”
This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
