Corker Statement on Diplomatic Negotiations over Conflict in Syria

WASHINGTON – After speaking on the phone with a senior representative of the Syrian opposition, U.S. Senator Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, made the following statement about diplomatic negotiations over the conflict in Syria.

“Today I heard from Dr. Riyad Hijab, a senior representative of the Syrian opposition,” said Corker. “As we know, the Assad regime— along with their Russian backers— continues to besiege cities, target civilians from the air and use starvation as a tactic of war against its own people, so I can understand the tremendous frustration I heard today from the Syrian opposition. They believe the context of the negotiations for a Syrian peace process has now shifted from what was originally passed in a recent UN Security Council Resolution. A process that prematurely forces the Syrian opposition to the table without taking into consideration their concerns– such as humanitarian access and the release of women and children wrongly imprisoned in Syria – will not produce the desired outcome.”

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