United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, “has called on all parties to exercise maximum restraint,” said a statement released by his spokesperson.
Guterres emphased his concern for the risks posed to civilians by potential military actions in the war-torn region, following the announcement made on Twitter by President Donald Trump on Sunday night.
The Secretary-General said that civilians and civilian infrastructure in the region, which has now endured more than eight years of conflict, needed “to be protected at all times” adding that “sustained, unimpeded and safe humanitarian access to civilians in need must be guaranteed in order to (allow the) United Nations and its humanitarian partners to carry out their critical work in northern Syria.”
He reiterates “that there is no military solution to the Syrian conflict.”
The statement concludes saying that “the only sustainable solution is a UN-facilitated political process pursuant to Security Council resolution 2254”, referring to the Council’s 2015 roadmap for Syria’s peace process.
President Trump said via Twitter on Tuesday that the US would not “abandon” the Kurds, referring to them as “special people and wonderful fighters”, adding that “any unforced or unnecessary fighting by Turkey will be devastating to their economy”.