Månad: oktober 2019

United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen has said that the work of the committee of discussing constitution should be committed to respecting the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Syria.

Pedersen, during a press conference in Geneva on Monday, added that the constitution belongs to the Syrian people and the role of the United Nations is limited to facilitating work of the committee.

He emphasized that that Syrians are the only ones who are entitled to draft constitution and determine future of their country.

” The committee’s work is based on basic principles that include respect for the sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Syria in accordance with the UN Charter and UN Security Council resolutions, especially resolution No. 2254 in a way that contributes to finding a political solution to the crisis.” Pedersen said.  Läs artikel

Hver fjerde sier nei, men hele 55 prosent vil at flertallet gjennomfører en førstegangstjeneste, viser en ny meningsmåling for ABC Nyheter. […]

Verken Norges offisersforbund (NOF) eller Befalets fellesorganisasjon (BFO) er overrasket.

– Det bekrefter at det er en bred oppslutning om Forsvaret og en stor forsvarsvilje, sier Torbjørn Bongo som leder NOF. Også Jens B. Jahren som leder BFO er tilfreds med resultatet. Läs artikel

Under international law, one country cannot invade another seize territory – yet that appears to have been endorsed. […]

Under international law, one country cannot simply decide it needs a “safe-zone” in another country, and then on that basis invade that other country, seize territory, and claim it’s theirs by virtue of the fact that they’ve seized it. But this is just what Turkey has done. Not only has this flagrant breach of international law gone largely unchallenged by world leaders; worse, it’s been formally endorsed – first by the US in the deal brokered by Vice President Mike Pence in talks with Turkish President Erdogan on 17 October, and secondly by Russia, in its deal with Turkey last Tuesday.

The US and Russia have effectively ratified Turkey’s unilateral and illegal extension of its border, and in the process, as one analyst observed, “brought an end to five years of semi-autonomy carved out by the Kurdish local administration and its military forces”.

To illustrate the range of situations this could give rise to, one commentator has suggested that based on Turkey’s re-writing of international law:

India can now argue that it needs a safe zone in Pakistan to keep extremists away from parts of the border of Kashmir. Pakistan may need to take over parts of Afghanistan to create Turkey-style safe zones. Russia can say that its role in eastern Ukraine is a “safe zone” or peace corridor. Saudi Arabia now likely needs a safe zone in Yemen. The number of safe zones that can be created on the Turkish model may be endless.

Fortunately, one country cannot by a single act simply rewrite international law, however it does illustrate the seriousness of the precedent.  […]

It was bad enough that the US enabled Turkey’s “safe zone” plan in the first place by paving the way for its invasion of north-eastern Syria. The fact that the plan has now been formally endorsed by both the US and Russia conveys a message that international law is irrelevant and that Turkey can do whatever it likes.   Läs artikel

President Bashar Al-Assad and the Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed during a phone conversation on Tuesday the situation in the north of Syria.

President Putin stressed that any deal between Russia and Turkey will focus on fighting all forms of terrorism and dismantling any separatist agendas in the Syrian territories.

On his part, President Al-Assad emphasized his complete rejection of any invasion of Syrian land under any pretext, blaming the parties which have separatist goals for the current critical situation.

President Al-Assad called for the return of the displaced people to their areas in the north of the country in order to foil any attempt to make a demographic change that some parties have sought to impose.

He reiterated that Syria will continue to fight terrorism wherever it is in the Syrian territories by all legitimate means. Läs artikel

Regeringen har nu överlämnat en ny proposition till riksdagen om fortsatt svensk trupp i Irak genom deltagande i den USA-ledda koalitionen Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR). Det innebär att Sverige framgent blir en del i den bredare konflikten i Mellanöstern som hamnat i ett nytt, än mer intensivt skede genom Turkiets angrepp i norra Syrien. Kopplingen till Syrien är uppenbar och farlig.

Koalitionen saknar mandat från FN:s säkerhetsråd. USA och Ryssland har inte varit intresserade av att få till stånd ett sådant mandat för att upprätthålla internationell fred och säkerhet utan föredragit att lämna fältet fritt för att genomdriva egna intressen.

Den svenska regeringen hänvisar till en inbjudan 2014 från Iraks regering som folkrättslig grund för insatsen vilket framstår som klart tveksamt, och den är hur som helst ingen anledning att dras in i stormaktsspelet som vi saknar varje inflytande över. Läs artikel

Den Alliansfria rörelsen (Non-aligned Movement) sammanstrålade under slutet av oktober i år för ett nytt toppmöte. Rörelsens 120 medlemsstater omfattar mer än hälften av världens befolkning och närmare två tredjedelar av FN:s medlemsstater. Rörelsen är av central betydelse för att upprätthålla FN-stadgan och bekämpa militära interventioner och inblandning i andra staters interna angelägenheter. (Utgivarna)

Baku, the Republic of Azerbaijan 25 – 26 October 2019

[…] The Heads of State and Government reaffirmed their determination to continue opposing any attempt aimed at the partial or total disruption of the national unity or territorial integrity of States, including the Syrian Arab Republic, as well as their commitment with respect to the sovereign equality, non-intervention in the internal affairs of States, the peaceful settlement of disputes, and the abstention from the threat or use of force, in accordance with United Nations Charter. […]

The Heads of State and Government took note of the efforts of the international community to deal with the situation in Syria. They appreciated the efforts of Mr. Geir Pedersen, the UN Secretary-General Special Envoy, and his predecessor, as well as the efforts of the former joint Special Envoys, and invite all parties to engage sincerely in this process to find a peaceful political solution to the current crisis in the Syrian Arab Republic through an inclusive and Syrian-led political process, based on Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015). They called upon all parties to allow the safe provision of humanitarian assistance to all those in need in accordance with relevant United Nations resolutions. Läs resolutionen

Russia’s allies in Iran, Syria have been put in the uncomfortable position of having to refrain from overtly denouncing the deal. […]

The 10-point agreement adopts Turkey’s position for a “safe zone” along the Turkey-Syria border; envisions an enforcer role for the Russian military, with joint patrols of the area; and puts the Syrian army in charge of security of the surrounding region.  […]

The Sochi agreement has sent shockwaves through Russia’s allies in Iran, Syria and Lebanon, who were reportedly not consulted about the agreement. They have been put in the uncomfortable position of having to refrain from overtly denouncing the deal, even though in their eyes, it legitimises Turkey’s invasion. With the help of its proxies, Turkey’s offensive has resulted in the mass displacement of close to 200,000 people.

The Syrian government remains hostile towards the Turkish military incursion, reflected in the post-Sochi official media coverage of northern Syrian villagers protesting against the Turkish “aggression”. Nor was a post-deal teleconference between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad particularly successful, as Assad reiterated his determination to stand up to the Turkish invasion using “all legitimate means”. […]

Putin has entered into a Faustian bargain that could damage Russia’s relations with both Damascus and Tehran. Somehow, Putin’s government assumes it can support Turkey overtaking a large chunk of Syrian territory for an indefinite period, while simultaneously pretending to be a great defender of Syria’s territorial integrity.

If Putin is not careful, he may soon find his country on the list of “illegitimate foreign forces” in Syria due to this flagrant Russian overreach. Läs artikel

Russia sent about 300 more military police and more than 20 armored vehicles to Syria on Friday under an accord between Ankara and Moscow that has halted Turkey’s military incursion into northeast Syria.

The deal, sealed on Tuesday by Presidents Tayyip Erdogan and Vladimir Putin, requires that Russian military police and Syrian border guards remove all Kurdish YPG militia from within 30 km (19 miles) of the Turkish border by next Tuesday.[…]

Under the terms of the deal, from next Tuesday Russian and Turkish forces will start to patrol a narrower, 10-km strip of land on the Syrian side of the border where U.S. troops had been deployed for years alongside their former Kurdish allies. Läs artikel