The United States reaffirmed its refusal to normalize relations with the Assad regime and urged the countries that took this path to reconsider their positions.
“We will not normalize relations with the Assad regime and reaffirm that the US administration does not encourage anyone to do so unless real progress is made towards a political solution,” US State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said in a press release. .
“We urge anyone interested in Damascus to think honestly and deeply about how this engagement can help meet the needs of Syrians, wherever they live,” Patel said.
Patel’s remarks came in the context of Syrian regime head Bashar Assad’s visit to the UAE and a meeting with President Mohammed bin Zayed, who stressed that “Damascus must return”. Arab environment.
Michael McCaul, Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee of the US House of Representatives, previously confirmed that normalization with the head of the Syrian regime, Bashar al-Assad, will not bring stability to the Middle East.
“Bashar Assad is a war criminal. He should not receive 21 gun salutes on a state visit,” McCall said in a tweet on Twitter, referring to the UAE’s acceptance of him.
On March 19, the head of the Syrian regime and his wife Esma Assad visited the UAE and were received by Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his wife Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak.
This is Bashar al-Assad’s second visit to the UAE since 2011, when the revolution against him broke out, the first of which was on March 18 last year.
It also came days after a visit to Moscow, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and discussed with him the expansion of the deployment of Russian forces in Syria and the increase of their bases.
It is worth noting that some Arab countries have recently tried to mend their relations with the Syrian regime, under the pretext of responding to the earthquake that struck northwestern Syria and southern Turkey at the dawn of the 6th of last month.
