President al-Assad: Al-Baath Party’s strength lies in its natural belonging to Arabism and Islam

Damascus, (SANA) President Bashar al-Assad said that the strength of al-Baath Arab Socialist Party lies in its natural belonging to Arabism and Islam, and in its confrontation of the plot seeking to undermine pan-Arab thought.

This came during President al-Assad’s meeting on Saturday with the leadership and cadres of Damascus branch of al-Baath Arab Socialist Party on the 51 anniversary of March 8 Revolution.

President al-Assad said that with the vision of citizens getting clear and the conspiracy becoming exposed, a climate of dialogue has become available for the party to enhance the state’s efforts in realizing reconciliation in parallel with striking terrorism.

President al-Assad pointed out that Damascus Countryside has a unique nature, making it necessary for efforts in this area to be focused on the intellectual and ideological dimensions and channeling energies to serve citizens in their daily lives.

President al-Assad pointed to the media campaigns that have targeted al-Baath Party over the past years to create a state of frustration through intensifying the accusations leveled at it and attempts to dent the Baathists’ morale, saying that such attempts are countered based on the Party’s participation in building the Syrian state and bolstering its capabilities during past decades.

He said that preserving pan-Arab thought and the real Islam helps safeguard the national identity and counter attempts to sow extremist thoughts within our society to strike those two pillars, noting that al-Baath Party’s broad base comes from its pan-Arab belonging.

“We are dealing with a community whose vision now is clearer than ever regarding the conspiracy targeting it, as the crisis has raised political interest and made larger numbers of people eager for discussion, which gives the party space for movement via logical and rational dialogue,” President al-Assad said.

He pointed to the Party’s ability to stand fast during the crisis, saying that individual defections are a healthy state that has rid the party of the opportunists and helped it start over with vigor, stressing the need to work diligently to get rid of all opportunists.

President al-Assad highlighted the role of Baathists in the current national reconciliations, adding that the Party has to play a greater role and find mechanisms of communication with people that support the state’s efforts.

President al-Assad pointed to incessant attempts by countries that support terrorism to turn Syria into a weak state, vowing to continue combating terrorism in parallel with the national reconciliations.

Post-crisis challenges are even graver than the challenges that the crisis presents, President al-Assad pointed out, stressing that most dangerous of all these challenges are extremism and collaborators.

He said that what is needed for the next stage are appropriate Dialogue mechanisms, combating corruption, enhancing national thought and efforts to solve daily life problems.

In a relevant context, President al-Assad drew attention to the reconstruction process, especially in the countryside, as it is one of the most pressing post-crisis challenges, noting that reconstruction will offer a big chance for restructuring the affected areas, which provides the owners of houses and estates that have been damaged a chance to improve their living conditions and will help revitalize investment and create job opportunities.

President al-Assad stressed the necessity of communication with political powers in Syria to gauge who could be an ally to al-Baath party in its project and mentality, adding that the leadership’s efforts are based on bolstering alliances with friendly countries, such as Russia, Iran and China, and the Arab parties that share common denominators with al-Baath party in thought and orientation.