The Russian delegation attending the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva, has drawn attention to shortcomings in the work of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights Violations in Syria and, in particular, to its distortion of the situation in the country. The commission's reports ignore the Syrian authorities' efforts to overcome the crisis, Artur Chernyakov, a representative of the Russian delegation, told on Tuesday.
"We believe that the picture of events painted by the commission is completely distorted," the Russian diplomat said, stressing that it cites "not terrorist atrocities and their feeding from outside, but, in fact, the Syrian government's counterterrorism activities" as the main destabilizing factor.
The commission "constantly goes beyond its mandate by commenting on the topics of possible use of chemical weapons by the authorities of the SAR," Chernyakov continued. Its conclusions "show disregard for the basic principles of international law, including respect for state sovereignty and territorial integrity. At the same time, it "glosses over the foreign occupation of Syrian territory, the plundering of natural wealth and the impact of unilateral sanctions," and "ignores the efforts of the authorities to overcome the crisis." Moscow believes that "such biased conclusions make the prospects of peace impossible," stated a representative of the Russian delegation.
Although Russia has repeatedly pointed out "fundamental flaws in the work of the commission," it is still not seen that the commission "has made any effort to take a more balanced approach to assess the situation in Syria," Chernyakov said. He deplored the continuing practice of using human rights issues "to address the opportunistic goals of a number of states interested in overthrowing the legitimate government of Syria."
The Commission on Syria was established by the UN Human Rights Council in August 2011. Its task is to investigate allegations of violations of international humanitarian law. The commission has been repeatedly criticized for biased assessments.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
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Based on materials from TASS