Thank you, Mr. President.

I also thank Special Envoy Pedersen and Assistant Secretary-General Msuya for their briefings.

Last week marked another grim anniversary of the Syrian conflict.

Over the past 13 years, situation in the country has worsened in humanitarian, political, security and economic aspects.

Terrorism has become the greatest threat to Syria’s political unity and territorial integrity as well as to regional peace and stability.

The current stalemate is unsustainable for Syria, and it is unsustainable for the wider region.

Therefore, it is high time for a realistic stocktaking by all relevant actors.

The essential requirement for a sustainable solution to the Syrian crisis is to achieve a national consensus in line with the expectations of the Syrian people.

Moreover, the international community also needs to realign its overall approach to the conflict in such a way that would support this objective at regional and international levels.

This requires all stakeholders to review their positions and make paradigm shifts where necessary in order to contribute to lasting peace and stability.

In this regard, actively engaging in mutually reinforcing processes in political, security and humanitarian fields as well as on the facilitation of return of refugees and early recovery is a necessity that cannot be further delayed.

A change of attitude is needed particularly in three critical issues:

First, Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process under UN facilitation must be revived.

The contours of a negotiated political solution to this crisis were drawn years ago by this very
Council through its unanimously adopted Resolution 2254. Its provisions must be upheld and implemented.

All relevant actors should support without any further delay the convening of the Constitutional Committee.

Let’s not forget that the Constitutional Committee was a tangible outcome of the Astana process and remains the only platform where the Syrian parties can come together under UN facilitation to produce a negotiated solution to the conflict and thus, shape the future of their country.

Second, the mistake of sub-contracting the fight against DAESH to another terrorist organization, namely the so-called “Syrian Democratic Forces” must end.

This separatist entity is neither Syrian nor democratic; it is nothing but the PKK/YPG itself.

Third, it is clear that sequential approaches that condition the return of refugees to advances in political process have not brought the desired results so far.

Creating the necessary conditions for the voluntary, safe and dignified return of Syrian refugees must be a part and parcel of the settlement process now.

This means scaling up early recovery projects and funding for them across Syria, including in the opposition held areas based on impartial needs assessments by the UN.

It also means supporting stabilization efforts in northwest Syria.

Mr. President,

It remains a collective responsibility to ensure continued flow of urgent humanitarian aid to those in need.

In 2024, a staggering 16,7 million people are estimated to need humanitarian assistance in Syria. This is the highest number of people in need since the start of the conflict.

Despite this, we have been witnessing downward trends in aid deliveries and humanitarian funding for Syria.

The failure to re-authorize the Security Council mandate for cross-border mechanism in a post-earthquake context has compromised the predictability of operations.

In order to compensate for this, the humanitarians need assurances that all three available border crossings will continue to be used for UN aid deliveries as long as needs persist.

We also saw humanitarian funding for Syria hitting a record low.

The UN Humanitarian Response Plan for Syria was only 38 per cent funded in 2023, making it the least financed plan in the history of the UN Syria response.

We cannot expect the humanitarians to work miracles in conflict zones without supporting them with humanitarian access and adequate funding.

To conclude, Mr. President, the toll of the 13-year conflict shows us that anything short of a readjusted holistic approach which addresses the various dimensions of the Syrian crisis in a simultaneous and inter-related manner has no chance of success.

Türkiye will continue its efforts to help achieve peace and stability in Syria through constructive engagement with all parties.

I thank you.