Iran stresses Syria’s sovereignty in crossborder aid mechanism, urges sanctions removal

Iran’s envoy to the United Nations (UN) has underscored global respect for Syria’s political sovereignty and territorial integrity in the provision of humanitarian aid to the war-ravaged Arab country, calling for the removal of unilateral Western sanctions on Damascus.

Majid Takht-Ravanchi made the remarks in an address to the UN General Assembly on Thursday, saying Iran's position on Syria's humanitarian issue is “completely clear,” and that the Islamic Republic has always supported the United Nations and the international community in their efforts to assist Syria.

“We have frequently stated that the provision of humanitarian aid to Syria is critical and that political circumstances must not be allowed to prevent aid from reaching people in need,” Takht-Ravanchi said.

“This must be done in a manner that fully respects Syria's political sovereignty, independence, unity, and territorial integrity and in compliance with the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter,” he added.

The senior Iranian diplomat said the Islamic Republic welcomes the UN’s recent adoption of Resolution 2642 (2022) about the cross-border aid mechanism and considers it a crucial step toward addressing Syria's urgent needs.

Takht-Ravanchi said Iran has reiterated that the cross-border aid delivery mechanism should be considered as an exceptional and temporary measure imposed by specific circumstances and that humanitarian aid to those in need must be delivered in cooperation and full coordination with the Syrian government and from within the Syrian territory as it would help to prevent the divergence of aid to unintended persons.

Stressing that the resolution sets out explicit demands for early recovery projects and increased transparency in relief efforts, he called on all parties to carefully adhere to the basic principles governing humanitarian assistance as well as to ensure neutrality and transparency.

“We demand the lifting of unilateral sanctions against Syria, which impede the implementation of the Resolution,” Takht-Ravanchi added.

“The implementation of early recovery projects such as electricity, which are critical to restoring access to basic services, must not be affected by unilateral sanctions. These illegal measures also stymie Syria's reconstruction efforts and humanitarian relief delivery in a variety of ways, even delaying the return of refugees and displaced persons.”

Last month, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the Security Council to extend its authorization of cross-border aid into northwest Syria by a year.

President Bashar al-Assad’s government has repeatedly denounced the cross-border mechanism as a violation of Syria’s sovereignty and a tool to advance Western agendas in the country.

Moscow and Beijing have generally agreed. They argue that aid to opposition-held territories should instead be routed “cross-line” from Damascus.

The UN resolution allowing aid deliveries across the Syrian-Turkish border at Bab al-Hawa has been in effect since 2014.

Last July, UN Security Council adopted resolution 2585 to extend the authorization of the cross-border aid mechanism. The resolution allowed the aid into Syria from the Bab al-Hawa border to run for six months until January 10, 2022, and then for an extension of an additional six months until July 10, 2022.

At the time of the adoption of the resolution, Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal al-Mekdad said that adopting resolution 2585 in its written form was an achievement because it included all aspects which Western countries had refused to consider.

The top diplomat underlined that the new resolution has put many restrictions on the movement of goods. He said Western states disrespect international borders and use the crossings to violate Syria’s territorial integrity.

Concerns have also grown over the West’s efforts, made under the guise of humanitarian assistance to support Takfiri terrorist groups that have been suffering heavy defeats against Syrian government forces.

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