Political process required in Syria before int'l reconstruction efforts - US official

WASHINGTON, Sept 19 (KUNA) -- There must be a political process if there is to be any international participation in the reconstruction of Syria, US Acting Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs David Satterfield said on Monday.
His remarks were made following a meeting of several countries in New York City held on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly gathering.
The consensus view of those at the meeting was that the priorities in Syria are to defeat the so-called Islamic State, end the violence, achieve "basic stabilization to address the humanitarian situation in Syria produced by the violence," and allow the return of displaced persons both within Syria to their homes, but also from outside Syria, back into the country, Satterfield said.
"But as we move on that path, and the movement there is quite rapid, switch to the political process as quickly as we can," he said. "Give that empowerment, and move that forward as rapidly as the security campaigns are moving." The end goal is an "intact, non-partitioned, independent Syria, a Syria which is not a proxy for any external state - Iran or anyone else," Satterfield said.
"Without a political process, a credible political process, one supported by the majority of the Syrian people, you're not going to get the kind of investment by the international community that's really necessary for the reconstruction of Syria," he said.
The countries attending the meeting "represent the majority of developed countries in the region," Satterfield said.
"If Syria does not rebuild, if it isn't truly stable, and that's not something that can be achieved militarily, you're going to have a resumption of violence," he said. "It may be under a different name. It won't be Daesh, it won't be Nusrah, it won't be al-Qaida, but it will be something else. This is how you get at the root generator of violence and instability, by true stabilization." The countries at the meeting "are absolutely committed to significant investment (in Syrian reconstruction), assuming that a credible political process is launched and moves forward," he added.
"Now, in Geneva, is the place where that process, under UN auspices, now needs to really take life and to take off," Satterfield said.
The US and many other parties attending the meeting do not believe that the majority of the Syrian people wish to see Bashar al-Assad continue in power," he said, adding, "The US view is he has lost his legitimacy, has lost his right to be in power. But that is the product, the end state, of a political process." (end) rm.sd