Youm7 – 10/03/2020
Randa Kassis, President of the Astana Platform of the Syrian opposition, affirmed that there are currently no serious initiatives under way to achieve a political solution in Syria. She noted that while battles on the ground continue, their intensity has somewhat diminished following the recent ceasefire agreement reached in Moscow between Russia and Turkey. However, she stressed that this does not necessarily imply that the parties will fully adhere to the agreement, particularly Turkey, which is expected to attempt once again to arm fighters in Idlib and deploy additional soldiers to Syria.
In an interview with Youm7, Kassis declared that the United Nations is incapable of imposing a political solution in Syria, as it lacks both the determination to launch genuine political initiatives and the willingness to risk confrontation with influential powers.
She urged politicians to pause and reflect seriously on the need to create a new political initiative. “This is precisely what we seek to achieve within the Astana Platform,” she explained, recalling that the Platform launched the Astana initiative in 2015 and contributed to the establishment of the Constitutional Committee from early 2017 until 2018.
Kassis underlined that efforts are continuing in coordination with international partners to establish a fresh political initiative capable of bringing about real change in Syria. She emphasised the importance of separating political processes from military developments on the ground, noting that only in this way can any new initiative succeed.