Asked by Lord West of Spithead To ask Her Majesty’s
Government what assessment they have made of the prospects for a
negotiated end to the civil war in Syria that does not involve
President Assad. The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth
Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con) My Lords, the lack of
progress made towards a negotiated...Request free trial
Asked by
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To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have
made of the prospects for a negotiated end to the civil war
in Syria that does not involve President Assad.
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The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
(Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con)
My Lords, the lack of progress made towards a negotiated
settlement in Syria is deeply disappointing. While the
opposition has confirmed its readiness for negotiations
without preconditions, the Syrian regime has pursued its
brutal military campaign and refused to engage seriously in
talks. Only a political settlement can bring stability and
peace to Syria. The United Kingdom will be pragmatic about
the nature of that settlement and we will continue to
support the UN process to achieve it.
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(Lab)
My Lords, I thank the Minister for that Answer. Our Syria
strategy—if we actually have one—is prolonging the civil
war, when ending the civil war is the best thing for the
poor, benighted people of that country. Our focus seems to
have been, from day one, regime change: presumably, not to
hand over to the hotchpotch of opposition forces, many of
which are worse than Daesh. Our lack of a clear vision has
resulted in Russia being the arbiter, massive Iranian
participation, Hezbollah, the raising of Kurdish
expectations and consequent problems with the Turks.
Surely, our aim must now be to put a stop to the war as
quickly as possible, accepting that the loathsome Assad is
inevitably part of the equation.
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My Lords, I agree with the noble Lord that our aim must be
to end this civil war as soon as possible. However, I
assure all noble Lords that the Government have been and
continue to be committed to the UN Geneva process, because
it brings together all the Syrian parties required to
ensure the stable settlement that we all desire. If we look
at what Staffan de Mistura is actually presenting, a whole
constitutional commission is proposed, which, yes, includes
members of the Assad regime being present. The only reason
why that meeting has not been held in Geneva since January
is that the Assad regime refuses to engage. We implore
Russia, and indeed Iran, to put on the utmost pressure to
ensure that the regime takes part in those talks so we can
achieve the lasting settlement that I know the noble Lord
and all of us desire.
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(CB)
My Lords, why does Her Majesty’s Government’s
policy—including funding armed groups and local councils
affiliated to jihadists and maintaining a special forces
presence in Syria, in breach of international
law—demonstrate a commitment to removing President Assad,
which can only help ISIS to recover territory? Surely, the
priority must be to eliminate ISIS and related terrorist
forces from Syria?
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I agree with the noble Baroness that this is about
eliminating ISIS, which is why the anti-Daesh coalition of
70-plus nations has managed to achieve that in Iraq. I have
seen it at first hand myself. However, the perverse
ideology of the hijacking of the noble faith remains.
Therefore, we must prevent ISIS coming to the fore, not
just in Iraq again—we must also eradicate it from Syria.
However, I refute totally the allegation that the
Government are supporting the regime. We are supporting
organisations such as the White Helmets, which provide
essential assistance, including sanitation and emergency
health provision, to address the civilian population’s
needs as a priority. That should be commended, not
condemned.
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(LD)
My Lords, what discussions are the Government having with
Russia and with President Erdo?an—who is here today—in
engaging internationally with the Syrian peace process?
What efforts are being made to de-escalate the conflict
between Iran and Israel, which is so dangerous right now,
in Syria?
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The noble Baroness is quite right: Turkey is also a key
player in Syria, as we have seen through its engagement in
Syria. Wide-ranging talks between the President of Turkey
and my right honourable friend the Prime Minister will be
under way shortly and Syria will be discussed. The noble
Baroness raises an important point about engaging with
Russia. As I have said previously from the Dispatch Box, we
continue to do so at the United Nations, because they
remain an important player. On the engagement of Iran and
Israel in Syria, we implore all sides to show restraint. As
the noble Baroness knows, we remain committed to the
nuclear deal because we believe that to be the best way of
ensuring Iran’s continued engagement and of finding a
resolution further afield.
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(Con)
My Lords, I support the noble Lord, Lord West, when he says
that President Assad is clearly going to be party to the
negotiated settlement. I hope that we can avoid saying that
individuals should be “held to account”. Although that may
be morally and ethically right, it does encourage them to
hang on.
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We, and the international community, certainly do not want
to encourage anyone we feel is not right for the process.
Most importantly, anyone whom the Syrian civilians
themselves feel cannot lead their country—it is,
ultimately, their decision—should not hang on and we should
not encourage him. As I have already said, we are not
against the engagement of the Syrian regime, led by Bashar
Assad, in the UN process, which all parties are signed up
to. However, the fact is that they are not engaging in that
process. We implore them, and anyone who has influence over
the regime, to do so.
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(Lab)
My Lords, one key thing is to keep stressing peace talks with
no preconditions. That is the clear message that we need to
hear from the Government. As the Secretary-General of the
United Nations said, evidence shows that gaining territory
and seeking to win this war militarily do not work. Will the
Minister convey that message to all the parties concerned?
Talking is the only way that we are going to achieve a
lasting peace.
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I agree with the noble Lord. That is why the UN’s efforts
have been geared to talks without preconditions, and the
opposition voices in Syria have subscribed to that. Equally,
the door is open to the Assad regime to participate in those
talks. A UN-agreed settlement must be the right way forward,
not individual players working out whose interests are best
served by the regime continuing. I again implore Russia, and
indeed Iran, to do their utmost to ensure that the regime
participates in those important talks.
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(CB)
My Lords, in 2002 I attended a reception at No. 10 for Bashar
Assad and his wife. They had earlier met Her Majesty the
Queen. He took in more than 1 million Sunni refugees from the
war in Iraq and was considered an important strategic ally in
the Middle East. When he looked like being toppled in the
civil war, he suddenly became a monster and his Government a
regime. Does the Minister agree that this sort of name
calling, of someone who is in effective charge of the
country, does nothing to help bring peace to the innocent
people of Syria, who are suffering nightmare bombardment from
the United States, the UK, Iran, Turkey, Russia, France,
Israel and Assad himself?
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The noble Lord partly answered his own question with the
final point he made: “and Assad himself”. That is when he
became the person we, the international community and the
Syrian people themselves felt could no longer lead a
Government. When you start attacking your own people and
using chemical weapons against your own population—I can
think of many words the press and others may use, but the
fact is that we do not believe he is part of the future.
Ultimately, it is for the Syrian civilian residents to decide
themselves.
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