China urges end to foreign troops' plundering of natural resources in Syria

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Wednesday said that the illegal plundering of natural resources in Syria by foreign troops must stop immediately.

"The illegal presence of foreign troops and their illegal military operations in Syria must end," said Dai Bing, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, adding that Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity should be fully respected.

Addressing a UN Security Council briefing on Syria, Dai said the counter-terrorism situation in Syria remains complicated, urging the international community to abide by international law and Security Council resolutions, adopt unified standards, combat all terrorists in Syria with zero tolerance, and "cease condoning, shielding, or politically exploiting terrorist forces."

The envoy called for greater efforts in the next six months to ensure a full implementation of Resolution 2672 adopted on Jan. 9 on cross-border aid deliveries into Syria, hoping a bigger impact could be achieved on the ground.

The cross-border mechanism of humanitarian deliveries is a temporary arrangement under special circumstances, and ultimately, there should be a gradual and orderly transition to cross-line deliveries, he noted.

"We welcome UN's updated plan for cross-line operations in northwest Syria, and look forward to seeing a more significant increase in the frequency of aid operations as well as the size of convoys," Dai said. "Cross-line delivery for the Rukban refugee camp in southeast Syria should be resumed as soon as possible."

He noted that unilateral sanctions and the resulting over-compliance run counter to the efforts of the Security Council and the wider international community to improve humanitarian access and increase humanitarian resources in Syria.

"China once again calls on relevant countries to immediately and fully lift unilateral sanctions against Syria," said Dai.