Statements from Shara in New York: We reached a 90 percent agreement with Israel

Shara spoke at the panel moderated by former White House Middle East Special Representative Brett McGurk at the Atlantic Council think tank in New York, where he came for the 81st General Assembly of the United Nations.

Shara noted that they held several rounds of talks with Israel to reach an agreement and said, "We reached an agreement of approximately 90 percent in the talks with Israel, but ultimately Israel withdrew."

Emphasizing that they are "working for a permanent peace with Israel" on the condition that Syria's rights are guaranteed, Shara continued as follows:

"Occupied Syrian lands is not peace. Peace can only be achieved when Syria's rights are taken back. It is a wrong approach for Israel to determine its policies towards Syria based on what happened in Gaza. If you want to protect your own security, you must also respect the security of others."

Shara stated that Syria's basic approach is to clear the country of foreign bases, preserve national unity and ensure independence.

Stating that any military presence on Syrian territory should have a legal definition approved by the People's Assembly and a legal framework that protects the rights of the Syrian state, Shara said, "Syria does not need foreign military bases in the near future."

Referring to the processes carried out regarding the foreign military presence in the country, Shara said, "The dialogue with Russia resulted in reducing the number of bases to two and an agreement was reached to turn these points into training bases for the Syrian army."

Stating that Turkish forces entered Syria within the framework of certain conditions regarding border security and at a time when the region was shaken by conflicts and wars, Shara said, "The number of Türkiye's bases in Northwest Syria has decreased, we continue to negotiate to clarify the legal status of this asset."

Shara stated that they are working to provide a safe corridor for Iraq's oil exports through Syrian ports.

Syrian President Shara stated that there is a strategic oil pipeline project that will extend from Iraqi oil fields to Syrian ports in order to facilitate exports and eliminate the necessity of passing through the Strait of Hormuz.