President of the Syrian Opposition Coalition (SOC), Nasr al-Hariri, sent a letter to Germany’s Minister of Foreign Affairs to extend his thanks and gratitude to the Federal Republic of Germany for the efforts to hold accountable those responsible for the use of chemical weapons in Syria, and for the full support for the efforts to redress the victims and prevent impunity.
Al-Hariri said that the SOC welcomes yesterday’s statement by current and incoming EU members of the UNSC (Germany, Belgium, Estonia, France and Ireland), as well as Norway and the UK on Syria chemical weapons, which “strongly condemn the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian Arab Air Force as concluded by the first report of the OPCW Investigation and Identification Team (IIT).”
“We express our highest appreciation for your efforts, and call on you to push for implementing Article 21 of UNSC Resolution 2118, which provides for the imposition of measures under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter in the event of non-compliance with this resolution, including the transfer of chemical weapons without permission, or the use of chemical weapons by anyone in the Syrian Arab Republic.”
He also stressed the need to “support accountability measures against all perpetrators, including higher authorities of the Syrian regime command.”
“We also affirm our confidence regarding the commitment of the Federal Republic of Germany to support the just cause of the Syrian people. We stress the importance of reaching a comprehensive political solution in Syria, in accordance with the relevant resolutions, including UNSCR 2254 (2015), that fulfils the aspirations of the Syrian people, to help them overcome this difficult plight and to build a state based on freedom, justice and good governance.” (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
