UN envoy meets Syrian Salad, urges inclusive transition

Timur Azari

DAMASCUS (Reuters) – The U.N. envoy to Syria urged an inclusive transition in Syria in line with a nine-year-old Security Council resolution during a meeting with new Syrian government commander Ahmed al-Shala, his office said on Monday.

In a separate statement from a meeting with UN Secretary-General Geir Pedersen on Sunday, Syria’s ruling General Command said they had discussed the need to review Security Council Resolution 2254 and said it needed to be carried out Updated to “fit new realities.”

The meeting is one of the most important international gatherings yet for Salaam, the leader of the Islamic Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group that has become the dominant force in Damascus since the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad more than a week ago.

Photos from the meeting showed Sala wearing a blazer and open shirt as he met with Pedersen, who has been the U.N. special envoy for Syria since 2018. organize.

HTS is designated a terrorist organization by Western and regional powers, including Türkiye, which has long been one of the main international backers of the Syrian opposition.

The new Damascus government did not elaborate on its thoughts on Syria’s next steps.

Newly appointed Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir, who previously led the HTS-affiliated government in Idlib province, said he would stay in office until March.

A statement from Pedersen’s office said Pedersen briefed Shala on the results of Saturday’s international conference in Jordan.

“The Special Envoy presented the outcomes of the international conference in Aqaba…underscoring the need for a credible and inclusive political transition owned and led by Syria in accordance with the principles of UN Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015),” Pedersen’s office said.

“The envoy stresses the United Nations’ intention to provide all assistance to the Syrian people.”

UN Resolutions in Focus

UN Resolution 2254 has become the focus of Syrian diplomacy since Assad was ousted and fled to Russia.

The resolution was adopted in 2015 at the height of the conflict, which stemmed from the 2011 pro-democracy protests against Assad’s rule. Approved.

The resolution expresses support for a Syrian-led political process facilitated by the United Nations, with the goal of establishing “credible, inclusive and non-sectarian governance within six months and setting out a timetable and process for drafting a new constitution”.

It also expressed support for free and fair elections within 18 months under the new constitution.

A Syrian statement said Salad “stressed the importance of rapid and effective cooperation to resolve the Syrian issue, as well as the need to focus on the territorial unity, reconstruction and achievement of economic development in Syria.”

Sarah spoke of the need for “care and precision during the transition and restoration phases of the institution in order to build a strong and effective system”. The statement also stressed the importance of providing a safe environment for refugees to return and providing political and economic support for this purpose.

“Shalala leaders noted the need to implement these steps with care and high precision, under the supervision of a professional team and not in haste, in order to achieve them in the best possible way,” the statement read.

EU foreign policy chief Kaya Callas said on Monday she had instructed the EU’s top diplomat for Syria to travel to Damascus and engage with the new government.

The Kremlin said on Monday it had not yet made a final decision on the fate of Russian military bases in Syria and was in contact with the country’s chief.

Russia is withdrawing troops from its frontline and posts in the Alawite mountains in northern Syria but has not left its two main bases after Assad’s fall, four Syrian officials told Reuters over the weekend.

(Additional reporting by Claudah Tanios in Dubai, Hatem Maher and Ahmed Torba in Cairo; Writing by Tom Perry; Editing by Gareth Jones)