UNITED NATIONS: Russia warned it will not allow militants in Syria to be sent to Afghanistan or elsewhere under a deal reached with Turkey that averted a large-scale military assault on rebel-held Idlib province.
Under the deal, Turkey agreed to separate opposition fighters from hardline sections which belong to groups branded as terrorists by the United Nations, but the fate of those extremists remains uncertain.
“There is talk that they will be sent off to other hotspots, for example Afghanistan,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told a news conference at UN headquarters. “This is unacceptable.” “They have to be eliminated or there has to be a judicial process,” he said.
Russia and Turkey reached the agreement after the United Nations and Western powers warned that an all-out assault on Idlib would lead to a humanitarian catastrophe in the province of three million people.
The deal calls for the creation of a buffer zone to be established by October 15 from which all fighters must withdraw to allow joint Russian-Turkish patrols.
Lavrov met with his counterparts from Iran and Turkey last week on the sidelines of the UN General
Assembly to discuss next steps in the agreement on Idlib.
Iran and Russia provide vital military support for Syrian forces while Turkey supports armed groups. The three countries last year set up the Astana group, which has largely eclipsed UN efforts in Syria.
Lavrov said Turkey faced “not a simple task” in Idlib, noting that the United States had also promised to persuade moderate fighters to split from the groups but failed to deliver.
UN diplomats say the agreement between Russia and Turkey to avert an offensive on Idlib has created an opportunity to jumpstart political talks. Last Thursday, seven countries including the United States, France, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt urged UN envoy Staffan de Mistura to urgently set up a committee on drafting a post-war constitution
for Syria.
But Lavrov said preparations for the committee should not be rushed.
“We know that pressure is being applied to Staffan de Mistura,” said Lavrov, adding that “it would be a grave mistake” to force the warring sides to begin work without an agreement.
Meanwhile, Syria’s transport ministry said on Saturday its main border crossing with Jordan would reopen to trade next month for the first time in three years, but Amman said consultations were still ongoing.
The ministry had announced on Saturday morning that the Nassib crossing, known as Jaber on the Jordanian side, was functional. It clarified in an afternoon statement carried by state news agency Sana that authorities had “completed logistical preparations to reopen the Nassib border crossing with Jordan on October 10”.
Jordanian government spokeswoman Jumana Ghneimat said on Saturday the “Jaber-Nassib crossing remains closed,” and no goods or travellers had passed through.
“The technical meetings to open the border are ongoing. Reopening it requires infrastructure, as well as logistical and technical standards, to be in place,” state media quoted
her as saying.
Government troops retook the Syrian side of the crossing in July under a deal with rebel fighters brokered by Damascus ally Moscow. It had been sealed completely since rebels overran it in April 2015, choking off one of the most important trade routes for the government.
The crossing was a key link not only for direct trade between the neighbouring countries, but also for longer-distance transit trade between Lebanon and the Gulf which was a significant source of revenue.
Earlier last week, Syrian Prime Minister Imad Khamis said all necessary steps had been completed to reopen the crossing, with investment in new infrastructure to be paid for by a sharp hike in duties.
“This crossing will be invested in according to our national interest. The customs fees were amended to achieve the interests of the Syrian state, increased from $10 to $62 for a four-tonne truck,” Khamis said.
Despite retaking swathes of territory in successive Russian-backed offensives this year, Damascus still controls only half of the 19 crossings along Syria’s lengthy borders with Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Turkey.
— Agencies
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
