Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has welcomed the end of Bashar al-Assad’s “barbaric regime” in Syria as he called a political solution for the country with protection for civilians.
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00:00Prime Minister, there's obviously been a fair few significant developments in Syria, can
00:04we first just get your reaction to what has happened?
00:06I welcome the fact that Assad has gone, the Syrian people had to put up with his brutal
00:13regime for far, far too long. We're talking to regional allies, it's very important now
00:18that there's a political settlement, a political way forward, and it's very, very important
00:24that we emphasise that civilians and minorities must be protected in this process, but very,
00:29very pleased that Assad has fallen.
00:32The rebel group which has taken Syria is viewed as a terror group by the government, your
00:36government says it has links to Al-Qaeda, will your government deal with this new Syrian
00:41regime?
00:42Well it's very early days at the moment, we do need a political solution to this and that's
00:47what we're talking to regional allies about. It is a good thing that Assad has done a very
00:52good thing for the Syrian people. What we must also ensure as we go through this, the
00:57rejection of terrorism and violence, that civilians are protected, minorities are protected,
01:02and that can only be through a political process. That's what we're talking to allies in the
01:06region about at the moment.
01:08You're in the region, are you expecting any sort of communication with that new regime
01:11or have you had any so far?
01:13Very early days. At the moment our engagement is with our allies, making sure that we're
01:19making that case for a political settlement here, we have to see this as an opportunity
01:25for the future of Syria, the future that's been denied for so, so long, that's a future
01:31without the terrorism and violence that we've seen far too much of in this brutal regime.
01:35So it's a real opportunity, we're talking to regional allies about how we take that
01:40opportunity for a political settlement here, but it's very, very early days.
01:43Last question, there are many celebrating tonight, you yourself say you welcomed the
01:46departure of President Assad, are you concerned that this could be destabilising for the region,
01:51is it something you expect to discuss while you're here in the area?
01:54Look, I'm very pleased that Assad has gone, I think we should all welcome that, it was
01:57a brutal regime imposed on Syrians for far, far too long, so it is good that he's gone,
02:04that should be welcomed, but it is important now that we stabilise, that we reject violence
02:11and terrorism and that we all work towards a political solution to this, a political
02:18settlement for the future of Syria and of course for the region.
02:20Alright sir, thank you very much for your time.