Russia does not support proposals for cross-border assistance in Syria, which involve keeping the current Bab al-Hawa checkpoint on the border with Turkey and reopening the al-Yaarubiyah checkpoint on the border with Iraq for a year, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya made statement at a briefing on Wednesday.
"You know that our colleagues in the Security Council have developed a draft [resolution], which will be discussed for the first time today. Even at the very beginning, we said that the statements of our partners on the reopening of cross-border crossings was a bad idea," Nebenzya noted.
The diplomat noted that the cross-border assistance mechanism "completely violates the principles of humanitarian assistance and the norms of international humanitarian law." "When last year we prolonged cross-border assistance for a year, until July 10, we made it clear that in addition to cross-border assistance, it's necessary to ensure that support is steadily provided across the lines of contact, from the territory of Syria," the Russian permanent representative to the UN pointed out. However, he did not give a definite answer to the question whether all the checkpoints on the borders of Syria should be closed.
Earlier it became known that the first version of the UN Security Council resolution on cross-border assistance to Syria provides for keeping Bab al-Hawa checkpoint and reopening of al-Yaarubiyah checkpoint. However, it does not envisage the reopening of a second border crossing with Turkey, Bab al-Salam, which, like Bab al-Hawa, could be used to deliver humanitarian aid to Idlib province.
The draft resolution submitted on Friday by a group of European countries to the Council is not final and is unlikely to even reach a vote. It will be a starting point for further discussions on the fate of the cross-border aid mechanism. The U.S. insists that all checkpoints be reopened. Russia points out that aid can be delivered centrally and under Damascus' control even to opposition-controlled areas, which means that a mechanism that was useful during the fight against the terrorist group Islamic State (banned in Russia) is no longer needed.
The fate of the cross-border assistance mechanism will be decided in the next two weeks. The mandate for Bab al-Hawa's work expires July 10. Since that date falls on a Saturday, when the UN Security Council does not meet, the vote on the final draft resolution - or several drafts - will take place no later than July 9.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Zuma \ TASS
Based on materials from TASS