China calls for greater relief to Syria

China's top envoy to the United Nations called for the international community to increase humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people and urged the US to stop politicizing the issue and lift unilateral sanctions against Syria immediately.

Humanitarian operations in war-shattered Syria are helping 6.8 million people a month, but a worsening economic crisis is deepening poverty and pushing more Syrians into humanitarian need, said Mark Lowcock, the UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs.

"We're helping millions of people in Syria, thanks to donors. But more and more people need humanitarian aid. Food is unaffordable, children are out of school, civilians are still being killed and COVID-19 looms," Lowcock tweeted Wednesday after briefing a Security Council virtual meeting on Syria.

Zhang Jun, China's permanent representative to the UN, speaking after the briefing, said China follows closely the humanitarian and economic situation in Syria.

"We are deeply worried that Syria is now going through severe economic collapse. The loss of currency value, rising unemployment, increased food insecurity and insufficient medicine supplies all add to the sufferings of the Syrian people. To save the economy of Syria is fundamental to saving more lives and preventing more severe humanitarian crises," he said.

Zhang said that the grave humanitarian impact in Syria from unilateral sanctions is undeniable. Years of economic blockades and illegal sanctions have worsened the socioeconomic and humanitarian situations in Syria and undermined the livelihoods of innocent civilians.

"At this critical time, unilateral sanctions further compromise the capacity of Syria to effectively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Lifting unilateral sanctions is more important and urgent than ever," he said.

Noting that UN Secretary-General António Guterres; Syria Geir, the special envoy for Syria; and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) have all made repeated appeals for the waiving of unilateral sanctions, Zhang said the appeals also have received the overwhelming support of member states. He asked for a positive response to those appeals.

Zhang said China urges relevant countries to demonstrate genuine sympathy and support for the Syrian people by lifting the sufferings they impose on them.

"We do not believe the so-called humanitarian exemptions can justify their actions or make the situation different on the ground. The Security Council should fulfill its mandate and take concrete actions in this regard. We also request a comprehensive report by the UN Secretariat on this issue," he said.

Zhang called for the international community to increase humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people, based on respecting the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The ambassador reiterated that China's position on the cross-border mechanism remains unchanged.

"Considering the current situation, we do not object to retaining the cross-border mechanism at this stage. We take note that after the adoption of Security Council Resolution 2533, UN agencies are making full use of Bab al-Hawa (a checkpoint on the Syria-Turkey border). We have learned that according to OCHA, it is possible for this crossing point to handle the increased deliveries," he said.

Zhang firmly refuted what he called "irresponsible comments" from the United States and urged the US to stop politicizing the humanitarian issue and lift unilateral sanctions against Syria immediately.

Zhang pointed out that China has always adopted a constructive and responsible approach in dealing with the cross-border issue.

"In fact, it is the United States that should reflect," he said, adding that the US voted six times against reasonable draft resolutions and amendments aimed at narrowing differences and finding solutions.

"If the US truly cares about the humanitarian situation in Syria, it should stop politicizing the humanitarian issue, stop putting up a hypocritical political show. If the US truly cares about the humanitarian situation in Syria, it should immediately lift unilateral sanctions against the Syrian people instead of creating groundless excuses.

"If the US truly cares about the humanitarian situation in Syria, it should stop its hegemony policy, regime change and bullying practices in the Middle East and other parts of the world, which have led to endless chaos and instability," he said.

Zhang reiterated that the Syrian government should always bear primary responsibility for improving the humanitarian situation in Syria.

"It is encouraging to see continued efforts and progress in cross-line operations into both the northeast and the northwest of Syria. China calls upon relevant parties to remove obstacles to cross-line operations and give priority to providing humanitarian relief from within Syrian territory," he added.

China called upon all relevant parties to respond to cease-fire appeals by the Syrian government, strengthen dialogue and consultation, and actively promote a "Syrian-led, Syrian-owned" political process, Zhang said.

China will continue to play a responsible and constructive role in the efforts to achieve a peaceful, just and proper settlement of the Syrian issue at an early date, he added.