Chinese envoy calls for measures to mitigate impact of escalating conflict in Gaza on Syria

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) — A Chinese envoy on Monday called for measures to mitigate the impact of the escalation of the Gaza conflict in Syria.

“Over the past four months, Israel has continued to carry out airstrikes against several locations in Syria in the occupied Golan Heights, which China is deeply concerned about. We call on all parties to exercise restraint and avoid escalation of tensions,” said Dai Bing, representative of China's permanent mission to the United Nations, during a briefing to the Security Council on Syria.

“Nations outside the region must play a constructive role to defuse the situation and prevent the conflict from spreading further,” he added.

“China welcomes the successful convening of the 21st round of high-level meetings on Syria under the Astana format, as well as Special Envoy (Geir) Pedersen's comprehensive contacts with all parties on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254,” the envoy said.

Dai called on the international community to uphold the “principle of Syrian leadership and ownership,” promote dialogue and consultation, and find a solution acceptable to all parties.

“We believe that the help of regional countries will give new impetus to the political solution to the Syria issue,” Dai said. “We support the Syrian government in taking the necessary measures to combat terrorism, maintain security and stability, and eliminate long-term threats to the political process in Syria. The international community must combat all terrorism in Syria with zero tolerance.”

The ambassador said that the United Nations and the Syrian government have maintained effective and smooth communication over the past year and that cross-border points have been expanded several times.

“We call on the concerned parties to show sincerity and make positive progress in cross-border operations. “As humanitarian funding for Syria has long been inadequate, the international community must increase its contribution to humanitarian assistance to Syria and support humanitarian operations and rapid recovery projects across the country,” he said.

Dai stressed that unilateral sanctions and the plunder of resources have long prevented Syria from achieving economic recovery, social development and improving the population's livelihoods, exacerbating the humanitarian catastrophe in the country.

“We call on the countries concerned to immediately stop their illegal actions and on foreign forces to immediately end their illegal military presence in Syria,” the envoy said.