2008
“I have discussed with President Mesic the catastrophic situation of our Palestinian People in Gaza due to the Israeli unjust blockade and the collective punishment policy practiced by Israel. I have made clear to President Mesic the necessity for the European Countries to take a stance in the interest of humanity, through the working as to lift the unjust blockade on the armless Palestinian People in Gaza,”
From His Excellency Joint Press Conference with His Croatian Counterpart, H. E. Stjepan Mesic, (December 22, 2008)
“We reiterate our support to the struggle of our Palestinian brethrens as to restore their rights to the creation of their independent State with Jerusalem as its capital, the securing of the Palestinian Refugees return. We do underline that the realization of this objective is conditioned to the unity of the Palestinian stance; consequently, we renew our support for dialogue among Palestinian factions as well as our preparedness to exert every possible effort as to prepare the appropriate conditions to make of success of the dialogue, through which the unity of the Palestinian people interest is achieved,”
From His Excellency Speech At the opening of the 2nd Transitional Arab Parliament Session, (November 9, 2008)
“First of all, they are paying the price of internecine Palestinian divisions even more than that of inter-Arab dissensions. We acted to remedy this during the summit, and before the Mecca Agreement we played a fundamental role in this regard. As I have said, we await the visit of President Mahmoud Abbas to see what we can do. We cannot allow this Palestinian situation to continue since it has repercussions on all Arab countries. “
From His Excellency Monday Morning Interview, (September 30, 2008)
"Our relation with Hamas can not be at the expense of our relation with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas or Fatah Organization. We have historic ties with Fatah and the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). Our aim of all such relations is to achieve Palestinian unity without which the Palestinians will be unable to set up their state."
From His Excellency Statements during His Kuwait Visit (June 4th, 2008)
“We stand at the same distance from all sides out of our convention that Israel is to benefit by the Palestinian divisions”
From His Excellency Interview given to the Qatari ‘Al-Wtan’ Daily (April 27th 2008)
“We do voice our pain and condemnation for the killing, siege and destruction caused by the Israeli mechanism of killing against our people in Gaza. We express sadness over the conditions of division and separation at the Palestinian arena . The priority should be for dialogue among the Palestinians. We say to the Palestinian brethrens that your enemy profits from every division as to carry out the more of massacres against you, and your children, making no distinction between any Arab, whether Palestinian or from any other Arab country; do not fall into the trap of the illusion that the enemy is to distinguish between a Palestinian and another Palestinian, or between the West Bank and Gaza, neither between an organization and another. All this deem it necessary for you as to surmount any reason for difference, whatever this reason might be big; the unity of the Arab stance and vitality regarding the Palestinian Cause is necessarily influenced with the unity of your stance; the guarantee for you, the safeguard for your people and Cause; and the only path as to restore your rights; on top of which the restoration of the land, the return of the refugees. With this in mind, We voice our appreciations for the efforts of our brethren in Yemen, and support for the Yemeni Initiative as to resume the dialogue, which we see as a suitable frame for agreement among the Palestinian parties. We also call for the immediate lifting of the siege imposed on Gaza, by the Arab countries in prelude for calling on the world countries to do the same.”
From His Excellency Opening Speech of 20th Arab Summit (March29th 2008)
2007
“We have been deeply hurt and saddened by the ongoing developments of the condition at the Palestinian field; hoping that an accord among Palestinian brethren on a national project in the face of the Israeli occupation is to be reached. Syria is ready to do her duty, exerting every possible effort among the brethren, as to achieve this objective.”
From HE’s Second Presidential Term Inauguration Speech , ( July 17, 2007)
“Supporting the Palestinian national unity should come first in our responsibilities as Arab states.”
From HE’s 2007 Parliament Speech, ( May 15, 2007)
2006
“Hamas victory is not a triumph for a certain group, but is understood to be an election for resistance. Hamas’ victory is an internal issue. We don’t distinguish between this and that group. We want a good relation with all the Palestinian trends. Our relationship with President Mahmoud Abbas is good. We told him that what concerns us is the unity of the Palestinians. But what concerns us with regard to Hamas’ victory is the great pressures put on us in the last few years for the presence of Palestinian groups in Syria. The election of Hamas proves the correctness of the Syrian position. This means that we were aware and confirmed that the path of resistance expresses the option of the Palestinian public. We believed at that time that this is what the Palestinian people want, we didn’t know that Hamas will enter the elections or not, and we didn’t know that it is going to win or not. But we were aware of this direction. The Palestinian people expressed this direction and the correctness of our position towards these elections. We have been criticized for such position. Colin Powell was the first to ask us to expel Hamas and Jihad, when he visited Syria three weeks following the Iraq war. Before the visit, we talked with brothers in Hamas and Jihad and told them that we expect that we will be asked to close the offices. In fact, they willingly said that they want to ease pressures on Syria and that they will close the offices. We told Secretary Powell about the agreement reached with the Palestinian factions. The surprise was that the required was not the closure of the offices, they asked to expel the organizations. Some Arab countries began pressing in this direction. I told them when you expel a person, we send him away to his country, where can we expel them, since they are not allowed to go home to their country? I asked them if they accept them in their countries, but they refused. Then I asked them to find a solution for them. Now, they found the solution through the elections.”
From HE’s Speech to the Arab Parties Conference, ( March 5, 2006)
2005
“In Syria, we have half a million Palestinians, and they have eight organizations, political organizations, for (inaudible). We have another two who was expelled from the Palestinian territories and came to Syria. They're not allowed to go back to their territory. The normal thing is that they can go back to their country or to their territory. In Syria, all these organizations, they only work on a political basis. They cannot do anything else. They meet with the Palestinian people in Syria, they express their political positions. Regarding two organizations, they don't have members in Syria. ... They don't have their organization, they don't have their offices. There are only few of the leaders. They were expelled from their territory, and they came to Syria. “
From HE’s Interview with CNN, (October 12, 2005)
“So they don't have offices. They live in houses and they meet with people. So when they say they close -- to close what? Close their houses? They're going to have another house. And they can meet with people. They live normally. But they don't do any action in the Palestinian territory from Syria.”
From HE’s Interview with CNN, (October 12, 2005)
“To hold on to the rights of the Palestinian people, which are political rights. This is very clear. These rights are the refugees’ right, because we have half a million refugees from Palestine in Syria and five to six million in other Arab countries who are not allowed to go back to their territories, the right to have a state and the right to have normal relations like any other state.”
From HE’s Interview with CNN, (October 12, 2005)
"Israel is swallowing up the Palestinian lands, and the Palestinian people are being killed and besieged at a time Israel, backed by the American administration, violates the international law as well as principles incorporated in the UN Charter."
From HE’s Message to the 16th World Youth and Students Festival, Caracas , Venezuelan, (August, 10, 2005)
2004
“Since 1948 up to the present day , the Palestinians have tried all options. They do not run in one direction. There were different currents and the Palestinians were trying one current and supporting it. The evidence is their support to Oslo and then to the Intifada which we view as uprising against Oslo.”
From HE’s Interview with Al Jazeera TV, (May 3, 2004)
"Syria’s doors are open, but meetings should have objectives, an agenda and certain direction… Syria’s approach is known. We always support Palestinians despite all developments."
From HE’s Interview with Al-Sharq Al-Wsat Daily, (January 29, 2004)
2003
“Syria's attitude is to support the Palestinian question, but we will not interfere in an internal affair . We side with the cause and our stand will not change.” “In the beginning of the peace process, we believed in the possibility of coordination between the Syrian, Lebanese and Palestinian tracks. Then, came the Oslo accords and separated the tracks. There is no link between the two tracks except the issue of Palestinian refugees, the destiny of which is connected with a peace agreement between Syria and Lebanon on the one side and Israel on the other, or Palestinian-Israeli agreement. For this, there is no coordination and there is no connection. The principles and terms of reference differ.”
From HE’s Interview with Al Hayat Daily , (November 7, 2003)
“Then, our life will be like the jungle with the existence of developed technology. Twelve years have already passed since the convening of the Madrid Peace Conference, but without achieving the objective for which it was held, namely to achieve just and comprehensive peace in the region. And despite what has been accomplished at certain stages regarding peace with Israel, we are today quite far from peace; more than ever. If some of the good-intentioned people are still adhering to illusions that the Israel government will comply with the requirements of just and comprehensive peace, the present Israeli government, instead of pursuing the road of peace, is escalating its oppressive policies against the Palestinian people, shelling houses, assassinating citizens, murdering civilians, displacing innocent people, and continuing the building of its separation wall in order to annex more of the Palestinian land. In doing so, it is strengthening the Apartheid Policy which drives us to live in a different age.”
From HE’s Speech Welcoming the Spanish King , ( October 21, 2003)
"Frankly speaking what we heard from the Palestinians whether before or after the war on Iraq was a refusal of what is called the Roadmap plan. We have many remarks on this plan, but eventually we will agree on what the Palestinians decide and agree.'' The President also said "Syria has adopted the cause of Palestine according to the liking of its owners ( i.e. the Palestinian people). We cannot refuse anything they are convinced of. When we participated in the 1991 Middle East peace process, we thought that this track would lead to one Syrian-Lebanese-Palestinian track. But what we had taken place was the fact that the Oslo process had actually separated the Palestinian track from the other two trails which remained one track.”
From HE’s Interview with Al-Arabia TV, ( June 10, 2003)
"Generally, the summit was dedicated for the Palestinian track and the Roadmap. The subject of the Golan was discussed with the European leaders many times. This subject was raised by Arab leaders continuously without asking them to do so with Americans and the Europeans. All must know that there will be no peace without Syria. But this raises another question: Why has the Roadmap been raised without the Syrian track if they worked for comprehensive process? Approximately a year ago, Western-American-European presentation was based on the basis that there is no solution except through a comprehensive peace and no solution but through one basket. They supported the Arab initiative. But putting forward the Roadmap, without talking about basic issues such as the refugees, Jerusalem, and borders, means that there are question marks about it. Some say for election reasons and some say to calm down the Arab public.”
From HE’s Interview with Al-Arabia TV, ( June 10, 2003)
2002
“Now, if we are to compare what is happening in the occupied Palestinian territory, it is not necessary that it is happening in one hour, but the accumulation of what Israel has been doing since 1948, the accumulation of killing the Palestinians. We, as Arabs,. when we see a Palestinian killed we feel all the pain that we have been experiencing during the last decades. If you ask any Arab person, he would not say to you that what happened on the 11th of September is more painful to him than what have been happening to the Palestinians for the last fifty years. I am going to give you just one example, what happened in Sabra and Shatila by Sharon in 1982? During one night, thousands of Palestinians were slaughtered in Sabra and Shatila. For us, as Arabs, and for any Arab citizen, this is more painful than anything else on earth. We heard a lot of criticism to this comparison that was made.”
From HE’s Interview with the Italian Corriere Della Sera, (February 14, 2002)
2001
"The Syrian power chips are at the service of the Palestinian Cause, which has ever been the central cause for Syria and for all Arabs, We never accept to sort the Syrian issue at the expense of Palestinian,'' '' Syria could never be a stick by Israel against Palestinians under any condition,''" Illusion are those who were to believe as to put pressure on Syria through the Palestinian track,''
From HE’s Amman Summit Speech, (March 27, 2001)
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