President of the Syrian Opposition Coalition’s (SOC), Salem al-Meslet, met with the leadership of the Ministry of Defense in the Syrian Interim Government as part of a regular tour in the liberated areas.
The meeting brought together President of the Syrian Negotiations Commission (SNC) Anas Abdah, Co-chair of the Constitutional Committee Hadi al-Bahra, Head of the Syrian Interim Government, Abdurrahman Mustafa, and commanders of the Syrian National Army (SNA) groups.
Participants in the meeting reviewed the ongoing efforts to qualify the SNA fighters and raise their combat readiness. They also discussed ways to develop measures to maintain security in the liberated areas and fend off terrorist attacks, whether by the Assad regime or terrorist groups.
Meslet reaffirmed the commitment of the opposition to the goals of the Syrian Revolution and the demands of the Syrian people, stressing the need to strengthen communication and coordination to achieve those demands.
He pointed out that the SOC is finalizing amendments to its bylaws, which will allow it to co-opt components that work hard and have a great impact on the ground. He stressed his keenness to make the SOC an institution for all Syrians.
For his part, Mustafa praised the SNA’s efforts as he stressed that it allowed the liberation of parts of the Syrian land. He added that had it not been for the blood of the fallen heroes, the Syrian Revolution and the Syrian people would not have hoped to achieve their demands for freedom, dignity, and democracy.
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Meanwhile, Abdah gave an overview of the political process and the UN envoy’s, Geir Pedersen, newly proposed “step-for-step” approach.
He pointed out that since the beginning of the Syrian Revolution, the Syrian people have confronted the Assad regime at the political, military, administrative, educational, and relief levels. He added that the political solution is the outcome of everyone’s work and that no one can be excluded from the solution.
Abdah stressed that the goal of the political solution is to achieve a genuine political transition, pointing out that the UN envoy’s “step-for-step” approach was rejected because it risks derailing the political process away from its purpose and essence that was laid out in UN resolutions, most notably the Geneva Communique of 2012 and UN resolutions 2118 and 2254.
Abdah made it clear that the proposed “step-for-step” approach deviated from the implementation of UN resolutions by diluting them and deviating from the mandate given to the UN envoy.
Bahra also spoke about the importance of collective action, adding that no party or person can hijack the political process. He said that the UN resolutions are clear on the need to reach a full political transition.
Bahra stressed that 11 years since the start of the revolution, the SOC, and other revolutionary institutions are still working for freedom, democracy, and humanity.
SIG’s Defense Minister Hassan Hamadeh stressed that the SNA is complementing the work of the SOC and SNC. He commended the SOC and SNC’s rejection of the UN envoy’s proposed “step-for-step” approach.
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.
