Kassioun Editorial 1166: The Syrian File Must Get Moving Immediately!

Moreover, this opinion is a correct principled one, although thus far it is still an impractical opinion. Therefore, we must employ all possible means to make it both principled and practical at the same time.

We say it is not practical for two main reasons:

First: Because the extremists in both the regime and the opposition have proven time and again, and through the years of increasing pain and torment that Syrians are experiencing, that the fate of the Syrian people and the fate of Syria itself is the least of their concern. They have also proven that they have no problem with keeping the wound open, deepening it, and contaminating it, even if things reach the point of no return when it comes to Syria’s unity and existence altogether.

Second: The Syrian crisis, though a local crisis in its outset, nevertheless and due to the action of the extremists themselves and their concern for their narrow interests, and through the objective intersection of these narrow interests with the interests of the historical enemies of the Syrian people, it has expanded from being a local crisis to a regional and then international one.

The combination of these two factors has greatly reduced the practical possibilities for resolving the Syrian crisis locally.

This was the case pre-Astana. After Astana, a set of shifts took place in the region during the past years, including the Saudi-Iranian settlement, and a set of Turkish settlements with the Arab countries, in addition to a growing decline in the influence of the Americans globally, regionally, and locally, especially with their declared, inexplicable crime in Palestine.

This change in the international and regional situation has opened a window that must be used to reach Syrian safety. This window is an agreement among Astana, China, and major Arab countries, away from the Americans and against their will, to provide an umbrella to Syrians and encourage them to sit under it, to solve their crisis.

Ultimately, the solution should only be Syrian-Syrian. However, securing an international and regional umbrella for it from those countries that have an interest in the stability of Syria has become a necessary condition for turning away from internationalization and regionalization towards an internal solution.
Looking at this from this angle, the Astana group countries shoulder a special responsibility in providing the conditions for the success of this process. They will not be absolved of their responsibilities by saying that the issue is left to the Syrians. Their role is specifically to provide the necessary umbrella so that the Syrians can play the role required of them.
From this perspective, we put forward our proposal and our call to hold the work of the Constitutional Committee in Damascus, under UN supervision, and with guarantees and the umbrella of countries that have a real interest in the stability and unity of Syria. This will constitute a serious gateway to initiate a more important and complex process, which is direct negotiation between the two sides stipulated in UNSC Resolution 2254, and ultimately in Damascus as well.

The extremists on the Syrian sides are still playing various political games that keep the country away from a solution and keep them away from making concessions to the Syrian people. Nevertheless, the opinion that the work of the Committee should move to Damascus, followed by the next, most important and highest stage of launching direct negotiations between the sides stipulated in UNSC Resolution 2254, has begun to spread more widely among patriotic Syrians of the different alignments.

The full implementation of UNSC Resolution 2254, in its essence, which states that Syrians have the right to self-determination, is the only way out not only of the crisis, but also of the possibility of permanent fragmentation. Time is our primary enemy as Syrians, and it is the enemy of all countries that have an interest in Syria’s stability. Therefore, moving along the Syrian file towards a solution must be done in parallel, by patriotic Syrians from the various sides, and by the international and regional powers that have an interest in stability, and those that have an interest in stopping the comprehensive American-Zionist hybrid chaos. If they do not hurry in securing the umbrella required for a solution, the Western winds will destroy all their previous efforts, and will reflect disastrously on Syria and its people, and on the interests of those countries as well.

(النسخة العربية)