Discurso do Representante Permanente, Embaixador Ronaldo Costa Filho, em reunião do Conselho de Segurança sobre a situação na Síria - 29 de novembro de 2022 (texto em inglês)

Mister President,

Brazil is alarmed by the upsurge in fighting and violence in Syria. We condemn the attacks impacting densely populated camps for internally displaced persons, such as the ones in rural Idlib in Northwestern Syria, which have caused further deaths, injuries and displacement. Once again, civilians are suffering the tragic consequences of continuing hostilities.

All attacks against civilians must immediately cease. International Humanitarian Law must be upheld and that applies to counter terrorism activities as well.  We join the Secretary General in his repeated calls on all parties to exercise maximum restraint, maintain ceasefires agreed upon and respect Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Brazil welcomes the conclusion of the 19th Astana talks in Kazakhstan, which reaffirmed commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as to the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter, which should be universally respected and complied with.

Resolution 2254 establishes the basis for the political process aimed at solving the Syrian conflict by peaceful means, by negotiation. We thank the Special Envoy for his commitment to the implementation of all applicable UNSC resolutions and continuous engagement with a wide array of stakeholders, working to foster confidence among the parties while dealing with crucial issues such as the one regarding missing persons.

The Constitutional Committee must resume its works so that we can move forward. And we agree with Mr. Pedersen, a decision on the venue will not lead us anywhere if parties do not agree to return to the negotiation table with a renewed commitment to concrete results.

Mister President,

According to the WFP, conflict, food and energy prices, and drought-constrained agriculture are crippling people’s ability to counter food insecurity not only in Syria, but also in many countries of the region. And after long years of conflict, countries became obviously more vulnerable to disease outbreaks, including those that can be prevented with access to clean water, basic sanitation and appropriate housing.

In Syria, we now face outbreaks of cholera and leishmaniasis. We hope the ongoing early recovery actions, together with the tireless work being done by OCHA, WHO and other UN agencies in the field, can help alleviate the suffering of the people living in Syria: AS challenges and crises mount, humanitarian funds grow increasingly scarce.

With the arrival of winter, we are again faced with the precarious situation of people living in makeshift tents, most of whom are women and children. According to OCHA, 6 million people need winter assistance.  Significant funding gaps persist and the precarious humanitarian situation clearly exacerbates security problems, as we have seen, for instance, in Al-Hol camp.

Mister President,

Let me assure you that Brazil remains committed to a Syrian-led and Syrian-owned process as a means to ensure a political resolution of the conflict. Our credentials to play a constructive role in this regard are reinforced by the historical ties that bound Brazilians and Syrians, by our humanitarian cooperation, including our national policy for Syrian refugees, as well as by the continuous diplomatic presence in Damascus, even in the most acute phases of the conflict.

Soon this Council will once more have to take action in relation to the expiration of authorization to cross-border humanitarian assistance. Brazil will continue to support the need for humanitarian assistance across Syria through all modalities and we really hope this Council can find common ground through a process as smooth as possible. We look forward to the upcoming report of the Secretary General and to any additional information on how we can work to alleviate the impact of sanctions in favor of the Syrian people.