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Security Council – Meeting in Arria Formula on “Accountability in the Syrian Arab Republic

Statement by the Permanent Representative of Italy to the United Nations, Ambassador Maurizio Massari, at the Security Council meeting in Arria formula on “Accountability in the Syrian Arab Republic.”—

Mr President,

let me thank Estonia and the other co-sponsors for organizing this important and timely meeting on accountability in Syria. I am also grateful to the briefers for their compelling remarks.

While aligning ourselves with the statement that will be delivered by the European Union, I would like to give some remarks in my national capacity.

Mr President,

We are concerned about the continuing deterioration of the Syrian crisis in all respects. The tragedy that has been unfolding in Syria for more than a decade has taken an exceptionally heavy toll on the Syrian people, in terms of loss of lives, systematic violations of human rights, vast destruction of its livelihood and infrastructure, and massive displacement of millions of civilians. This enormous suffering is now further aggravated by the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis, while a full stabilization on the ground is far from achieved.

Humanitarian needs in Syria have continued to increase at levels even higher than during the armed conflict. As international community, we have the responsibility to do our utmost to support the Syrian peoplein terms of life-saving assistanceand rehabilitation of basic services.

That, however, should not weaken our commitment to the principles of accountability and justice for victims, which remainessential requirements for a stable and peaceful Syria, At the same time, prosecution of war crimes and crimes against humanity under national jurisdiction, where possible, can make an important contribution to securing accountability.

Wwe reiterate our full support for the existing mechanisms to fight impunity, such as the IIIM, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Investigation and Identification Team, and the Commission of Inquiry. Our priority today is to have a proactive approach in supporting a credible, inclusive and viable political solution, in accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 2254. Therefore, we are committed to ensuring maximum support for UN Special Envoy Pedersen in the implementation of the provisions of Resolution 2254 that will follow a comprehensive approach and include issues of major relevance to any reconciliation effort, such as detainees and missing persons.

In this framework, and despite the setback at the Constitutional Committee’s sixth session last October, due to the positions taken by the Syrian Government delegation, we fully support the relaunching of the Constitutional Committee track as a Syrian-led platform for constructive dialogue among parties.

I thank you.