The fighting against terrorism in Syria needs to continue in parallel with pushing for the ceasefire between Syrian government and opposition, Chinese special envoy Xie Xiaoyan said on Wednesday.
Speaking at a press conference at the Chinese mission to the EU, Xie stressed that the international community should continue to apply the same and unified standard when striking all terrorist organizations listed by the United Nations (UN).
Despite that the group the Islamic State was defeated in Syria, he said, there are other groups of terrorists in the country and the neighboring regions.
The breeding ground of terrorists and radicalism has not yet been uprooted, he noted, adding that the fight would take quite a long time.
Xie was in Brussels attending a two-day international conference on the future of Syria co-hosted by the EU and the UN.
The conference, aiming to pump financial aid for Syrians and garner political support for UN-led Syria peace talks, brought together participants from more than 85 countries and organizations at ministerial level, as well as those from more than 200 non-governmental organizations (NGOs).
Xie said China is deeply concerned about the worsening situation in Syria and urged the relevant parties to resolve the issues within the framework of international law and through dialogue and consultations.
"We should stick to the direction of the political settlement. Military action will only bring more suffering to the Syrian people," he said.
To find out a sustainable political solution, he said, there must be respect for sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Syria and the Syrian people must decide the future of their country by themselves.
He said China has made consistent and persistent efforts in search of a political solution to the Syrian crisis.
He noted China has kept contacts with various parties from different sides. "Since November last year, we have received both government and opposition delegations from Syria. "
"Our message is simple and clear: encourage the parties to reconcile their differences and engage in dialogue and negotiations," he said.
Though it's unrealistic to see a breakthrough in the short term due to gasping difference on so many issues, Xie said it's important for relevant parties to keep the momentum of dialogue.
"Every cloud has a silver lining. We firmly believe that there is always a way out for the Syrian crisis," he underlined.
When it comes to China's role in humanitarian aid to Syria, he said China "is never absent".
"Since the start of the crisis, China has provided multiple humanitarian assistance in the form of goods or in cash through bilateral or multilateral channels, totaling 740 million RMB (about 117.5 million U.S. dollars), " said the special envoy, adding that China will "continue to do so within our command."
