Russia accuses Ukraine of supporting Hayat Tahrir al Sham in Syria and clashes with the United States at the UN Security Council

Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia on Tuesday accused Ukraine of providing military support to Hay’at Tahrir al Sham fighters, the faction that, with its allies, is leading an offensive against Syrian forces in northwestern Syria.

“We’d like to draw attention in particular to the presence of identifiable traces indicating the involvement of the Main Directorate of the Ukrainian Intelligence Service in organizing hostilities and supplying weapons to fighters in northwestern Syria,” Nebenzia said at a meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the escalation in Syria.

He added, “We point to the identification of Ukrainian military trainers who were training Hay’at Tahrir al Sham fighters in combat”.

The Russian ambassador stressed that Hay’at Tahrir al Sham fighters not only don’t hide the fact that they are supported by Ukraine, but they boast about it, accusing Ukraine of providing them with drones in particular.

He added, “cooperation between Ukrainian and Syrian terrorists driven by hatred of Syria and Russia continues to recruit fighters into the Ukrainian Armed Forces and organize attacks against Russian and Syrian forces in Syria”.

The Russian representative stressed that what has happened in recent days in Syria has made it clear that the actions of the United States, which is in Syria illegally, are aimed at destabilizing the country.

He continued, “As history shows, the exploitation of terrorists for political purposes backfires on their masters… We continue our contacts with our partners in the Astana process, and we are in contact with our colleagues in Iran and Türkiye, who share our concerns regarding the escalation in Aleppo and Idlib… We agree with them on the need to coordinate efforts to stabilize the situation in Syria”.

Nebenzia concluded his speech by calling for a return to the ceasefire in Idlib dated March 2020, and we are confident that stability on the ground and the return of security and peace in Syria can only be achieved by removing the illegal military presence.

Syria has seen renewed violence in the past week after four years of relative calm, with Hay’at Tahrir al Sham and allied factions seizing government-held territory in the north of the country.

Hay’at Tahrir al Sham (formerly al Nusra Front before it broke ties with al Qaeda) and allied opposition factions have been launching a surprise attack in northwestern Syria since November 27.

On the same context, the UN Special Envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, warned of the danger of ISIS and its return after the renewed conflict in Syria, noting that the possibility of the outbreak of conflict in other areas in Syria remains.

Pedersen said, “The possibility of conflict erupting in other areas of Syria remains… Today, the Syria Democratic Forces took control of a number of villages that were under the control of the Syrian government in Deir ez-Zor, which threatens the imminent danger of ISIS… There is news of possible military support from the international coalition forces led by the United States”.

On the other hand, during the Security Council session, Russia and the United States clashed, accusing each other of supporting “terrorism”.

Robert Wood, the US deputy ambassador to the United Nations, accused the Syrian government and Russia of causing civilian casualties in attacks on schools and hospitals.

Russian Ambassador to the UN Vassily Nebenzia, in remarks addressed to Wood, said he lacked the courage to condemn a clear terrorist attack on peaceful civilians in Syrian cities.

UN envoy to Syria Geir Pedersen also stressed that no side to the Syrian conflict can resolve the conflict through military means, calling on all parties to the conflict to fulfill their obligations to protect civilians and allow safe passage for those fleeing the violence.

“We need to de-escalate and restore calm, and I call on all parties to the conflict to implement their obligations to protect civilians and allow safe passage for those fleeing the violence… The past years have shown that no Syrian party is capable of resolving the conflict through military means,” he added.

The Syrian delegate called on the Security Council to condemn the recent attack on Idlib and Aleppo, which was carried out, as he said, by “organizations listed as terrorist organizations,” stressing that his country refuses to whitewash the image of terrorist organizations.

In contrast, Türkiye’s Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations, said that Syria will remain stuck in a cycle of violence and instability unless a genuine national reconciliation process is launched, noting that the conflict in Syria is the result of the political stalemate and the failure to meet the aspirations of the Syrian people.