Syrian Arab News Agency
October 31, 2019
October 31, 2019
“As for Trump . . . he is the
best American President, not because his policies are good, but because he is
the most transparent president. All American presidents perpetrate all
kinds of political atrocities and all crimes and yet still win the Nobel Prize
and project themselves as defenders of human rights and noble and unique
American values, or Western values in general. The reality is that they are a group of criminals who
represent the interests of American lobbies, i.e. the large oil and arms companies,
and others. Trump talks transparently, saying that what we want is
oil. This is the reality of American policy, at least since WWII” —
Bashar al-Assad
Interview Transcript
Journalist:
Hello and welcome to this special interview with the President of the Syrian
Arab Republic, His Excellency Dr Bashar al-Assad. Thank you for receiving
us Mr President. Your last interview with Syrian media was several years
ago and therefore we have a lot of questions. We will begin with
political questions and then move into internal issues.
President Assad: You
are welcome, and as always let us speak with full openness.
Journalist: Mr President, thank you very much for
receiving us. Since the political issues are pressing at the moment we
will start with politics, Mr President. The United States announced a few days
ago that the leader of the terrorist organization ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi,
was killed. And it thanked Russia, Syria, Iraq, the Turks and the Kurds for
helping kill Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Trump thanked Syria, but we have not heard
any comment from Damascus. What is your take on Trump thanking Syria? Did Syria
really take part in this operation?
President Assad:
Absolutely not, we heard about this only through the media. Maybe, the
reason behind including a number of countries as participants in this operation
is to give it credibility so these countries will feel not embarrassed, but
have the desire to be that they are part of a “great” operation, as the
Americans have tried to portray it. And in this way, they are credited with
fighting terrorism. We do not need such credit. We are the ones
fighting terrorism. We have no relations and have had no contact with any
American institutions.
More importantly, we do not
really know whether the operation did actually take place or not. No
aircraft were detected on radar screens. Why were the remains of Baghdadi
not shown? This is the same scenario that was followed with Bin Laden.
If there are going to use different pretexts in order not to show the
remains, let us recall how President Saddam Husain was captured and how the
whole operation was shown from A to Z; they showed pictures and video clips
after they captured him. The same happened when they killed his sons
several months later; they showed the bodies. So, why did they hide
everything about the Bin Laden operation and now also the Baghdadi operation?
This is part of the tricks played by the Americans. That is why we
should not believe everything they say unless they come up with evidence.
American politicians are actually guilty until proven innocent, not the
other way around.
Journalist: Mr
President, if Baghdadi has actually been killed, does it mean the end of his
organization, or is it as usual that there will be new leaders and new
organizations which are being prepared for the moment when the cards of their
predecessors have been burned out?
President Assad:
First, Baghdadi represents ISIS, and ISIS represents a type of doctrine,
which is the extremist Wahhabi doctrine. This type of thought is more
than two centuries old. As long as this thought is alive and has not
receded, this means that the death of Baghdadi, or even the death of ISIS as a
whole, will have no effect on this extremist thought.
Regarding Baghdadi as an
individual, it is well-known that he was in American prisons in Iraq, and that
they let him out in order to play this role. So, he is someone who could
be replaced at any moment. Was he really killed? Was he killed but
through a different method, in a very ordinary way? Was he kidnapped?
Was he hidden? Or was he removed and given a facelift? God
only knows. American politics are no different from Hollywood; it relies
on the imagination. Not even science fiction, just mere imagination.
So, you can take American politics and see it in Hollywood or else you
can bring Hollywood and see it through American politics. I believe the
whole thing regarding this operation is a trick. Baghdadi will be
recreated under a different name, a different individual, or ISIS in its
entirety might be reproduced as needed under a different name but with the same
thought and the same purpose. The director of the whole scenario is the
same, the Americans.
Journalist:
Questions have been raised about the Russian-Turkish agreement, particularly
the item related to maintaining the status quo in the region which was subject
to the Turkish aggression, Tal Abyadh and Ras al-Ain with a depth of thirty-two
kilometers. What some people understood from this was that it legitimized
the Turkish occupation, particularly that the agreement did not include any
Syrian role within these areas which were discussed in the agreement.
What is your response to that?
President Assad:
First, the Russian principles have been clear throughout this war and
even before the Russian base that started supporting the Syrian army in 2015.
These principles are based on international law, Syrian sovereignty and
Syria’s territorial integrity. This has not changed, neither before, nor
after, nor with changing circumstances. However, Russian policy deals
with the realities on the ground. These realities on the ground have
achieved two things; the withdrawal of armed groups from the north to the south
in coordination with the Syrian Army, and as such the advance of the Syrian
Army to the north, to the area not occupied by the Turks. These two elements
are positive, but they do not cancel out the negative aspects of the Turkish
presence until they are driven out one way or another. This agreement is
a temporary one, not permanent. If we take for example the de-escalation
areas at a certain period of time, some people believed that they were
permanent and that they will give terrorists the right to remain in their areas
indefinitely. The fact was that it was an opportunity to protect
civilians, and also to talk to the terrorists with the objective of driving
them out later. So, we have to distinguish between ultimate or strategic
goals on the one hand, and tactical approaches on the other.
In the short term, it is a
good agreement – and let me explain why; the Turkish incursion, not only
reflects Turkey’s territorial greed but also expresses American desire.
The Russian relationship with Turkey is positive because it reigns in
Turkish aspirations. On the other hand, it outmaneuvers the American game in
the north. Let me explain this. The recent German proposal which was
immediately supported by NATO – and the Germans would not make this except on
behalf of the Americans, NATO is the same thing as America. The proposal
talked about restoring security to this region under international auspices.
This means that the area would be outside the control of the Syrian state and
thus making separation a reality on the ground. Through this agreement,
the Russians reigned in the Turks, outmaneuvered the Americans and aborted the
call for internationalization which was proposed by the Germans. That is
why this agreement is a positive step. It does not achieve everything, in
the sense that it will not pressure the Turks to leave immediately. However, it
limits the damage and paves the way for the liberation of this region in the
future, or the immediate future, as we hope.
Intervention: God
willing
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