Nasr Hariri, head of the delegation of the opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) to Geneva talks, said that “the survival of Bashar al-Assad risks hindering political solution in Syria,” stressing that “the Syrian opposition is capable of leading political transition in Syria.”
Hariri, who is visiting the United States to meet with officials of the US Congress and President Donald Trump’s administration, said the visit will include several states, most notably New York and Washington D.C.
Hariri pointed out that the visit, among other things, aims to reach out to the Syrian community and Syrian civil society organizations in the United States. Hariri is set to attend a conference on 26-27 October that will be organized by a group of Syrian organizations and attended by the Syrian community in the US.
“The war on terror as well as the situation in the provinces of Raqqa, Idlib and Deir Ezzor currently dominate the Syrian scene,” Hariri said. He added: “In addition to these key issues, we will also discuss Russian’s dominance of the efforts to reach a solution and the latest developments in Syria with the US administration.”
Hariri went on to say that they will convey a message to the American side regarding the Russian moves aimed at creating an alternative track to the Geneva process, the UN resolutions, and the political transition process.
“We will inform the US administration that there is real opposition capable of leading political transition in Syria,” Hariri said.
Hariri stressed that the battle with the Assad regime is a purely political one, adding that taking up arms was necessary to protect civilians. “We hope a complete ceasefire is achieved to reach a political solution in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions, meet the aspirations of the Syrian people for freedom, bring about a political transition in which Bashar al-Assad does not have a role to play in the beginning, and bring Assad to trial.”
“The survival of Bashar al-Assad in power risks hampering the fight against terrorism and other major projects. It also risks undermining efforts to achieve political transition, restore peace and stability in the region and the return of Syrian state institutions to life,” Hariri said. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department + The New Arab)
