Foreign Ministers of a number of Western and Arab countries on Thursday reiterated support for the urgent convening of a constitutional committee to advance the UN’s efforts to achieve a political solution to the conflict in Syria on the basis of UN Security Council Resolution 2254.
A joint statement by the foreign ministers of Egypt, France, Germany, Jordan, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and the United States stressed that “there is an urgent need for concerted diplomacy and international political will to end the conflict. There is no military solution to the war and no alternative to a political solution.”
“We affirm in the strongest terms that those who seek a military solution will only succeed in increasing the risk of a dangerous escalation and wider conflagration of the crisis to the region and beyond.”
“It is, therefore, imperative to move forward with a political solution consistent with UN Security Council Resolution 2254,” the statement added.
Signatories of the statement called on the UN and the Office of the Special Envoy for Syria to convene, “as quickly as possible, a credible, inclusive constitutional committee that will begin the work of drafting a new Syrian constitution and laying the groundwork for free and fair UN-supervised elections in a safe and neutral environment in which all eligible Syrians – including those in the diaspora – have a right to participate.”
They also urged the UN Special Envoy for Syria to report back to the Security Council on his progress no later than October 31. They encouraged all sides to ensure the Syrian parties are prepared to “engage substantively in the committee’s proceedings once convened.” (Source: Syrian Coalitions’ Media Department)
