The Syrian Opposition Coalition’s (SOC) Office for Women held a symposium under the title “Syria in the latest studies by international research centers.” The symposium was held under the supervision of SOC’s Vice-president Ruba Habboush. SOC’s Secretary of the political committee and Coordinator of the SOC’s Office of Documents and Studies, Riyad al-Hasan, gave on overview on a number of studies that warn the international community of normalization of relations with the Assad regime or lifting economic and diplomatic sanctions on it.
The discussions focused on Russia’s role in obstructing UN Security Council resolutions in their three main tracks. Russia prevented the UN Security Council from condemning the Assad regime’s violations of UN Resolution 2118, its repeated use of chemical weapons against the Syrian people, and its refusal to hand over its cache of chemical weapons.
Al-Hasan also highlighted the studies focusing on Russia’s role in exacerbating the suffering of the Syrian people by blocking the delivery of cross-border humanitarian aid. Russia is also expected to use the veto to block the extension of a UN mandate for the delivery of humanitarian aid through the last open border crossing. It also supported the Assad regime in its refusal to comply with UN Resolution 2254, which lays out steps for reaching a political solution in Syria.
Moreover, Russia did not commit to the establishment of a transitional governing body and disrupted the work of the Constitutional Committee. It is also backing the Assad regime in its preparations to hold farcical elections later this month and through which Russia seeks to rehabilitate the Assad regime.
Participants also discussed ways to revitalize the political process and launch an intra-Syrian national dialogue in order to find alternatives and achieve the Syrian people’s aspirations for getting rid of tyranny and establishing a state that is based on freedom, dignity and equality. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
