Russian Fertilizers Unable to Reach Syria Due to US Sanctions - Polyanskiy

UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th February, 2023) Humanitarian efforts of supplying Russian fertilizer to Syria cannot be carried out because of the American penalties, the Russian Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyanskiy said on Tuesday.

"Because of the American Caeser Act, even with the UN's efforts in Damascus, humanitarian supplies of Russian fertilizer can't be carried out from fertilizers that are impounded in EU ports," Polyanskiy told the Security Council members.

Given that the agricultural lands are occupied by the US, Russia expects that Washington will take necessary steps to carry out this humanitarian operation.

Earlier today, the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen held a meeting in Moscow to discuss mobilizing international assistance to help Damascus overcome the consequences of the recent devastating earthquakes.

During the talks, Moscow also stressed the need to coordinate efforts of the UN specialized agencies with Damascus in accordance with the UN General Assembly's Resolution 46/182, which provides for the leading principles of humanitarian coordination, and to respect the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Syria.

On February 6, parts of Turkey and Syria were hit by massive magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes and a series of aftershocks that caused massive casualties and destruction, killed thousands of people and injured many more. In Turkey, the disaster claimed the lives of over 44,000 people. The Syrian Health Ministry has said that the final death toll from the earthquake in the government-controlled part of Syria reached 1,414 people, but the United Nations has estimated the total number of deaths in the country at 8,500.