American “occupation troops” stationed in Syria are “looting” the country’s resources, Beijing has claimed
China has blasted the United States for its “banditry” in Syria, claiming that Washington’s years-long military occupation and the “plundering” of Syrian resources have placed the country on the brink of a “humanitarian disaster.”
Addressing reporters during a press briefing on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin was asked to comment on recent reports in Syrian media that US forces had transported a large quantity of “looted oil” from Syria to Iraq earlier this month.
“We are struck by the blatancy and egregiousness of the US’s plundering of Syria… Such banditry is aggravating the energy crisis and humanitarian disaster in Syria,” he said, citing Syrian government statistics purporting that “over 80% of Syria’s daily oil output was smuggled out of the country by US occupation troops” in the first half of 2022.
The level of US greed in stealing resources from Syria is as striking as its “generosity” in giving out military aid often in the amount of billions or even tens of billions dollars.
“Whether the US gives or takes, it plunges other countries into turmoil and disaster, and the US gets to reap the benefits for its hegemony and other interests,” he added. “This is the result of the US’s so-called “rules-based order.””
On January 14, Damascus’ state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported that “a convoy consisting of 53 tanks loaded with stolen Syrian oil” were brought from the country’s Hasakah province to US “bases in Iraqi territory,” noting the operation was carried out alongside local Kurdish militants which have long received American backing. The outlet also stated that 60 additional trucks smuggled stolen oil and wheat into Iraq earlier this month.
“The Syrian people’s right to life is being ruthlessly trampled on by the US. With little oil and food to go by, the Syrian people are struggling even harder to get through the bitter winter,” Wang added, demanding that “the US must answer for its oil theft.”
US forces were first sent to Syria in 2014, beginning with a contingent of special operators followed by more conventional ground troops the next year, most embedded with Kurdish fighters in the country’s oil-rich northeast. Though then-President Barack Obama maintained the deployment was focused only on combating Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) terrorists, Washington had long intervened in Syria’s war against jihadist groups, sending and overseeing countless arms shipments to rebels seeking to overthrow the government in Damascus beginning as early as 2013.
Though American involvement in the conflict slowed under the next administration, in 2019 President Donald Trump said some US troops would remain in Syria “for the oil,” openly suggesting Washington would simply “keep” the energy resources.
Subsequent reporting in 2020 would later reveal that the Trump administration had approved a deal between a US energy firm and Kurdish authorities controlling northeast Syria to “develop and export the region’s crude oil” – a contract immediately condemned as “illegal” by Damascus. However, while that particular deal would later fall through after President Joe Biden took office, Syrian authorities have continued to accuse Washington of plundering its resources and some 900 US troops remain in the country illegally.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova earlier said that the treaty provides for various forms of bilateral cooperation.
The comprehensive strategic partnership agreement between Russia and Iran has entered into force, Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali told Sputnik.
"It is already binding," Jalali said when asked about the date of entry into force of the agreement, as well as whether Iran had notified Russia of the completion of internal procedures.
He recalled that the treaty was ratified by both chambers of the Russian parliament, and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed it. At the same time, the document was ratified by the Iranian parliament, approved by the Guardian Council, and the president issued it as a law.
"Therefore, in both countries it currently has the form of a law and, naturally, has entered into force," Jalali said.
On January 17, Putin and his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, met in Moscow to sign the Comprehensive Strategic ...
Defying the United States threats, ministers from more than 30 nations have packed Bogotá’s San Carlos Palace to charge the Israeli regime with genocide over its October 2023-present brutal military assault against the Gaza Strip.
The dramatic display of international solidarity saw dozens of high-ranking officials from across the globe convene inside the stately palace on Tuesday, determined to hold the regime accountable for, what they unequivocally called, a “war of genocide.”
The two-day emergency summit, organized under the auspices of The Hague Group -- a coalition co-chaired by Colombia and South Africa -- had representatives, ranging from such countries as Algeria and Brazil to Pakistan and Spain, in attendance.
The participants described the drive as a coordinated effort to stop the Israeli atrocities.
Behind closed doors, ministers and envoys, meanwhile, engaged in intensive sessions aimed at drafting collective measures to pressure the regime -- steps expected to be unveiled by ...
