“We do not support countries that upgrade their relations or express their support for the restoration of the barbaric dictator Bashar al-Assad,” the spokesman for the US diplomacy, Ned Price, said to the press on Tuesday.
Washington on Tuesday called on all governments to think twice before proceeding with any normalization of relations with the president, or in its view “barbaric dictator” Bashar al-Assad, whose minister recently met with his Turkish counterpart in Russia.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a key backer of rebels who have sought to topple Mr Assad’s government since 2011, now says he is open to meeting his Syrian counterpart.
The defense ministers of the two countries met in Moscow at the end of December. It was the first official meeting of this level since the outbreak of war.
“We do not support countries that upgrade their relations or express their support for the restoration of the barbaric dictator Bashar al-Assad,” the spokesman for the US diplomacy, Ned Price, said to the press on Tuesday.
“We urge states to take a hard look at the Assad regime’s appalling human rights record over the past twelve years as it continues to commit atrocities against the Syrian people and deny them access to life-saving humanitarian aid,” he added. .
Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russia and Iran, has regained control of most of Syria during an armed conflict that has killed half a million people, displaced half the country’s population and marked the rise and the fall of the Islamic State (IS) jihadist organization.
Last year saw the lowest death toll since the start of the war and a growing number of countries see Mr Assad as the victor in the conflict. In March 2022, the Syrian president traveled to the United Arab Emirates, a US ally, in his first visit to another Arab state since the war broke out.
After the meeting of the defense ministers in Moscow, the Turkish government received yesterday figures of the Syrian opposition to reassure them, reaffirming that it supports the decision of the UN Security Council for the political settlement of the crisis in Syria.
As of 2020, the US says sanctions against Bashar al-Assad will remain in place until the regime is held accountable for the atrocities committed.
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With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
