UN Security Council has extended on 11 July 2020 the UN cross-border mechanism on northwest Syria through the Cilvegözü / Bab al-Hawa border crossing for a period of 12 months.

The UN mechanism plays a vital role in delivery of urgent humanitarian assistance to some 2.8 million people in need in northwest Syria. Therefore, it is important that the UN mechanism has been maintained although the number of border crossings reduced to one.

On the other hand, it is unfortunate that the UN Security Council decision has not included this time the Öncüpınar –Bab al-Salam border crossing. Exclusion of this border crossing from the UN mechanism will make the humanitarian access to 1.3 million civilians living in the Aleppo area harder and further increase the responsibility that Turkey has already shouldered.

In this context, Turkey will carry on with its efforts to ensure that the international humanitarian activities towards Syria will continue uninterrupted. It will also act in coordination and cooperation with all stakeholders, in particular with the UN and its agencies, in order to address the additional challenges that the recent alteration in the UN cross-border mechanism might create.