Lord Hylton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2014-06-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they and their allies are able to promote local truces in Syria and to help such truces to become more permanent.

Baroness Warsi

Assad’s regime has been using siege tactics against civilian populations, sometimes forcing them into a position where they accept a truce as a way of being allowed food and medicine. We saw this approach in Homs, and elsewhere. We do not believe that this is a model which should be replicated in other places in Syria. UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2139 called for an end to the regime’s use of siege tactics, and for aid to reach those who need it. This is not currently happening, as the UN has made clear in its last three reports on UNSCR 2139. The regime bears primary responsibility for the humanitarian crisis, and Resolution 2139 must be implemented in full. Only a political settlement, based on the principles of the Geneva Communiqué, can bring about a lasting settlement.