Bethnahrin National Council and World Council of Arameans (Syriacs) hold fruitful dialogue session to come to a national action plan for Syria

NORSBORG, Sweden – In order to address the turbulent and urgent situation in Syria, which calls for a unified approach and a national action plan for the Syriac people, the Bethnahrin National Council and the World Council of Arameans (Syriacs) on Saturday held a closed dialogue session in Norsborg, Sweden. The dialogue session served as a constructive impetus to arrive at a strategy for united national work.

The basis of the dialogue sessions was unity in plurality, and to arrive at a joint political strategy for Syria based on this understanding. This substantive session follows a broader Syria Conference held in Germany earlier this year. Both sides expect that Saturday’s fruitful session will be followed up with more detailed and strategic discussions in the near future.

President Michael Naim Hadodo led the Bethnahrin National Council delegation, consisting of MUB Executive Board member Shamiram Mecida Rohyo, European Syriac Union External Relations Offical Metin Rhawi, European Syriac Union Official for Internal Relations Jacob Mirza, and Augin Maksi-Elyas, Chairman of the Federation of Syriac Associations in Turkey. The World Council of Arameans (Syriacs) delegation was led by President Johny Messo, Vice President Shleymun Ego, former chair of the Syriac Federation in Sweden Kenan Anter, and Fuat Icmen, chair of the Syriac-Aramean Association in Norsborg.

What has happened in Syria over the past year, even the last few months, will not have featured in many geopolitical scenarios. Key regional players such as Hezbollah, the Ba’ath regime, and Iran have been dethroned, eliminated, weakened, or pushed into the background. The new situation is turbulent and uncertain. This makes the situation for Syriacs in these bordering homelands all the more pressing.