UN Extends Critical Aid From Turkey To Syria's Rebel North

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said after the vote that cross-border aide remains 바카라�an indispensable lifeline for 4.1 million people in northwest Syria.바카라� 

The vote, the U.N. chief stressed, 바카라�comes as humanitarian needs have reached the highest levels since the start of the conflict in 2011, with people in Syria grappling with a harsh winter,바카라� according to his spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

All eyes had been on Russia, which in the past abstained or vetoed resolutions on cross-border aid deliveries. It has sought to replace aid crossing the Turkish border to northwestern Idlib province with convoys from government-held areas in Syria. Since the early years of the war, Turkey has sided with and supported Syria's rebels.

Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said supporting the resolution was 바카라�difficult,바카라� describing the northwest as an enclave 바카라�inundated with terrorists.바카라� The vote, he said, is not a change in Moscow's 바카라�principled position바카라� that cross-border aid deliveries 바카라� which began in 2014 바카라� are temporary and should be replaced by Syrian government-controlled deliveries. 

Syria's U.N. Ambassador Bassam Sabbagh criticized Western countries for 바카라�politicizing humanitarian work,바카라� and said Western sanctions 바카라�have aggravated the suffering of the Syrians.바카라� He claimed the government has been 바카라�working relentlessly" to provide basic services to Syrians.

Last month, Guterres warned in a report to the council that Syria's already dire humanitarian situation is worsening. If the aid deliveries from Turkey to Idlib weren't renewed, millions of Syrians might not survive the winter, he warned. 

Deliveries across conflict lines within the country cannot substitute for 바카라�the size or scope of the massive cross-border United Nations operation,바카라� Guterres said. On Sunday, a convoy of 18 trucks entered the area of Idlib through front lines held by Syrian government forces.

The resolution put the Security Council on record as 바카라�determining that the devastating humanitarian situation in Syria continues to constitute a threat to peace and security in the region.바카라�

Guterres said humanitarian access across Syria 바카라� both through cross-border operations and deliveries across front lines 바카라� must be expanded. He urged Security Council members and others 바카라�to continue supporting humanitarian partners' efforts to deliver assistance to those who need it throughout Syria,바카라� Dujarric said.

The Security Council initially authorized aid deliveries in 2014 from Turkey, Iraq and Jordan through four crossing points into opposition-held areas in Syria. But over the years, Russia backed by its ally China, has reduced the authorized crossings to just one from Turkey 바카라� and the time frame from a year to six months.

Many of the people sheltering in the northwest Idlib area have been internally displaced by the nearly 12-year conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands and displaced half the country's pre-war population of 23 million.

The resolution, co-sponsored by Brazil and Switzerland, will allow for aid deliveries through the Bab al-Hawa crossing from Turkey to northwest Syria for the next six months, until July 10.

Speaking on behalf of the Security Council's 10 elected members, Ecuador's U.N. Ambassador Hernan Perez Loose said the resolution will address 바카라�the dire and urgent needs of the Syrian people,바카라� but he reiterated the need for 바카라�more certainty and predictability for humanitarian organizations.바카라�

U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield stressed that an extension of only six months 바카라� while allowing the 바카라�Syrian people to breathe a sigh of relief" 바카라� makes it 바카라�harder and more costly for aid workers to procure, hire and plan바카라� assistance. It also hinders so-called recovery projects, or restoration of critical functions that helps communities bounce back 바카라� a key Russian demand.

바카라�A 12-month extension is needed for the U.N., and it is needed for our humanitarian partners and for recipients,바카라� she said, a view echoed by Britain, France and other council members.

David Miliband, CEO of the International Rescue Committee, expressed relief at the cross-border aid renewal guaranteeing assistance over the winter, but stressed that the six-month extension 바카라�will once again be short-lived바카라� and that deliveries from Turkey will still be needed in July. 

Russia's Nebenzia warned, however, that there will be 바카라�no discussion about a mechanical extension of the cross-border extension바카라� unless Western members of the council 바카라�fundamentally change바카라� their views on providing aid to Syria. 

He accused the West of not being concerned about the needs of ordinary Syrians and inflating 바카라�the myth바카라� that cross-border deliveries can't be supplanted by convoys across front lines. He also sharply criticized the West, saying Idlib receives half the funds for early recovery projects while the majority of Syrians live elsewhere. 

In addition to pushing for more cross-front-line aid deliveries, Russia has also pushed for early recovery projects in Syria. Guterres said in the December report that at least 374 early recovery projects have taken place throughout the country since January 2021, directly benefiting over 665,000 people, but he said more is needed.

The resolution also calls on all U.N. member states to respond to Syria's 바카라�complex humanitarian emergency바카라� and meet the urgent needs of the Syrian people 바카라�in light of the profound socioeconomics and humanitarian impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.바카라� 

In Syria, an Idlib-based doctor, welcomed Monday's vote. 

바카라�The decision to extend aid through the border is the only real lifeline for Syria's north, especially for the medical sector,바카라� said Safwat Sheikhouni.

Had the resolution not been extended, it would have been a 바카라�catastrophe바카라� for local residents because it would have led to the closure of the offices of most humanitarian organizations there, he said.