German Foreign Minister Annalina bierbock said during a speech to Parliament on Wednesday that the occupation of the Golan Heights violates international law.
Beerbok’s speech came after the Israeli government decided earlier this week to increase the Israeli population in the occupied Golan Heights.
A spokesman for the German foreign ministry said today that the meeting of German diplomats with members of the Syrian Interim Government is a good opportunity to communicate with the new de facto rulers of the country.
“This was the first good opportunity to communicate with (HTS) and the de facto guardians in Damascus,”he added. He pointed out that yesterday’s talks in Damascus focused on the stability of Syria and discussed ways to resume the German diplomatic presence there.
Birbuk said she would make it clear to Turkey during a visit scheduled for Friday that the rights of Kurds in northern Syria must be protected.
The UN special envoy to Syria Geir Pedersen called from Damascus today for the organization of “free and fair” elections with the end of the transitional phase in the country after about three months, hoping at the same time for a “political solution” with the Kurdish autonomous administration.
Speaking to reporters in Damascus, Pedersen said: “We now see a new beginning for Syria (… We will witness free and fair elections when that time comes, after the transition period,” he said, pointing out at the same time that there is a “need for immediate humanitarian assistance” to Syria, in preparation for “economic recovery, and we hope to see the beginning of a process that ends the sanctions.
