President of the Syrian Coalition Khaled Khoja said Monday that talks between US Secretary of State John Kerry and the High Negotiations Committee did not result in anything new. Khoja added that these talks just delivered messages similar to those suggested by Iran and Russia. He also said that Russia and Iran continue to interfere in order to disrupt the High Negotiations Committee.
“Kerry did not make any promises, nor did he put forward any initiatives. He has long been delivering messages similar to those drafted by Iran and Russia which call for the establishment of a ‘national government’ and allowing Bashar al-Assad to stay in power and stand for re-election,” Khoja added.
Khoja referred to an American intervention in favor of the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces, which are the same military forces that produced the Russian-endorsed “Syrian Democratic Council.” This intervention, Khoja added, will be aimed at producing a pro-regime opposition to replace the real opposition which expresses the aspirations of the Syrian people.
“The core of issue is not related to setting a date for negotiations, but whether there is an international political will to create an appropriate environment for negotiations. The moment there is such an environment, we will be ready to engage in negotiations as we have already assembled our delegation negotiators,” Khoja went on.
Meanwhile, member of the Syrian Coalition Burhan Ghalioun stressed that “no one including the Russians, the Americans, the Iranians or anyone else can impose defeat on a people determined to attain salvation and liberation.”
“If the Syrian people are left with no other option but to do as the Vietnamese and Afghan peoples did to retain sovereignty over their land and the right to self-determination, which is the hardest and most painful choice, then they do not lack the courage or heroism they need to achieve their goals,” Ghalioun added.
Ghalioun emphasized that “the people that give up their dignity will lose all chances to survive and will live in misery and humiliation till this society falls apart and dissolve once and for all.” (Source: Syrian Coalition + Al-Sharq al-Awsat)
