Researcher: Inclusive national dialogue essential for real solutions in Syria

In this context, Dr. Abeer Salman, an expert in international relations, clarified that a national dialogue, in its essential meaning, must include all Syrian factions and communities. She emphasized that a dialogue restricted to a single group cannot legitimately claim to be national or inclusive.

Dr. Salman added in an interview with ANHA Agency: “Syria’s diversity, when expressed through an inclusive dialogue, gives political decisions significance both domestically and internationally, allowing Syrian citizens to genuinely feel their presence and stake in this land.”

She noted that previous attempts under the banner of “Syrian National Dialogue” failed to achieve the intended objectives. “We all know that the outcomes did not match the level of public mobilization witnessed in Syria, nor the aspirations following the fall of the regime or the formation of a new government, as some analyses at the time suggested,” she said.

Dr. Salman stressed that the current stage urgently requires a comprehensive national dialogue capable of producing a constitution that fulfills the aspirations of the Syrian people. She added: “If there is no genuine and transparent discussion about the massacres and violations committed by some factions in recent months, as the Syrian government describes them, there will be no real solution; it would be self-deception.”

She emphasized that solutions must begin with presenting the facts to all parties, followed by tangible actions. “The most appropriate slogan for us today is forgiveness and reconciliation, after the loss of many lives, the violation of great dignity, and the suffering of children—history bears witness to what has happened in Syria,” she said.

Concluding her remarks, Dr. Salman warned of the dangers of foreign interference in Syrian affairs. “Everything that has happened and continues to happen in Syria, the region, and the broader Middle East is the result of external interventions—from the Sykes-Picot Agreement to its extensions and subsequent modifications. To this day, we remain at the mercy of these foreign interventions.”

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ANHA