STATEMENT ON THE RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN THE SYRIAN CONFLICT
206th Meeting of the Executive Committee, New York
The Executive Committee of the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA), elected by non-partisan civil society organizations in over 100 countries, continues to be gravely concerned over the recent developments in the Syrian conflict and expresses deep solidarity with the people of Syria who are confronting serious atrocities.
Mindful of the complexity of the situation in Syria, we call upon all parties to the United Nations, in particular the members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), to strengthen their efforts towards an integrated multilateral framework and solution to put an end to the Syrian conflict. In support of the international conference on Syria as a follow up to the Geneva communiqué, suggested by U.S. and Russia, we urge all parties to fully engage in peaceful negotiations to achieve a resolution for sustainable peace and security. It is vital that the United Nations is allowed to play an active role in the conference deliberations, especially since it will most likely be mandated to carry the main responsibility in the immediate post-war peacekeeping and rebuilding process.
Calling for all parties to the United Nations to provide greater humanitarian aid to reduce and prevent the further loss of life in Syria, we request the United Nations to secure humanitarian assistance and access for the victims of the Syrian civil war.
Noting the risk of the loss of credibility of the United Nations, we urge all member states of the UNSC to seek an effective and sustainable resolution to the conflict. In this respect, we applaud Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the Joint Special Representative of the United Nations for Syria, Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, in their continued diplomatic efforts towards a negotiated political solution to end “this prolonged and ever-deepening crisis” in Syria.
We, the people’s movement of the United Nations, reiterate the importance of civil society’s contributions with regards to the removal of obstacles to achieving peace and security and urge all parties to ensure enhanced civil engagement in the conflict resolution process.
