BEIRUT, September 11 /ITAR-TASS/. Syria and its people are wishing success to the mission of new UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura, Syrian President Bashar Assad, who met the Italian diplomat in Damascus, said on Thursday.
“The Syrian government is ready to work and cooperate with the new UN envoy in order to reach a settlement that will rid the Syrian people of terrorism,” Assad went on to say. “The success of Staffan de Mistura and his mission will be a success for Syria and its people,” the SANA news agency quoted the Syrian president as saying.
"The events that are taking place in Syria and the Middle East have brought to the forefront the struggle against terrorism, which has become a threat to all. Any progress in this field will contribute to promoting reconciliation agreements reached in various parts of Syria and will consequently make it possible to switch over to a national dialogue,” the Syrian president said.
Assad’s talks with Staffan de Mistura passed in a positive atmosphere. The sides expressed similar views on the UN Security Council resolution 2170, which provides for the creation of an international anti-terror coalition. “They stressed the importance of that decision and the need to implement it in the right way,” the SANA news agency reports.
Ali Haidar, the Syrian Minister of State for National Reconciliation, told journalists after meeting the new UN envoy for Syria that Damascus would regard any unsanctioned US military action in Syria as an aggression. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem made similar remarks.
“It is hard for us to say what the Syrian response could be so long as an attack had not been launched. The response will depend on the nature of the attack,” Ali Haidar said, adding that any military or other actions on the Syrian territory should be coordinated with Damascus.