US double standards recipe for terrorism: Syria FM

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem has slammed the US double standards in fighting terrorism, saying such policies only prolong the crisis in Syria.

Addressing the 69th meeting of the UN General Assembly meeting on Monday, Muallem slammed Washington’s “dual policy” of launching strikes on some militants in Syria while providing money, weapons and training to others.

“This is a real recipe for the increase of violence and terrorism, shedding of Syrian blood, [and] prolonging of the Syrian crisis,” Muallem said, adding, “This behavior creates a fertile ground for the growth of these terrorist groups that commit the most heinous crimes on Syrian territory.”

Muallem added that some of the key supporters of “armed terrorist groups” are among the countries which have joined the so-called coalition led by the US against ISIL, adding that the foreign-backed militants have been “unleashed like a monster” against Syria, Iraq and Lebanon.

“Let us together stop this ideology and its exporters. Let us simultaneously exert pressure on the countries that joined the coalition led by the United States to stop their support of armed terrorist groups. Only then, combating terrorism militarily becomes viable,” he said.

The top Syrian diplomat pointed to the election of President Bashar al-Assad in June’s poll and noted that those who claim to want a political solution in Syria should respect the Syrians’ choice and will.

Muallem reiterated that Damascus is committed to a political solution to the ongoing crisis in Syria.

Since September 22, the US and its allies, including Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Jordan, have been conducting airstrikes against the ISIL inside Syria without any authorization from Damascus or a UN mandate.

The airstrikes are an extension of the US-led aerial campaign against ISIL positions in Iraq.

While most European governments have refrained from joining the US-led air campaign in Syria, France, the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium and Britain are contributing to the US campaign.

Washington has been supporting the militants operating against the government in Syria since March 2011. Many ISIL terrorists have reportedly received training by the CIA in Jordan and Turkey. Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been also staunch supporters of militants fighting the Syrian government.