Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister writes to NATO over Afrin

Luxembourg Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Jean Asselborn urged NATO to closely monitor the situation in Afrin.

Luxembourg Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Jean Asselborn urged NATO to closely monitor the situation in Afrin.

In a letter addressed to NATO’s general secretary Jens Stoltenberg, Asselborn warned the alliance about the damaging effects of the Turkish operation “Olive Branch” in Syria.

Following the interrogations raised by many parliamentarians and the motion adopted during the debate on foreign policy that took place on 14 March 2018 in the Chamber of Deputies in Luxembourg, Asselborn wrote to the NATO to draw attention to the continued deterioration of the situation in Syria, including in and around Afrin.

In the letter minister Asselborn has expressed his fear that this operation will result in a real disaster.

Asselborn advised that NATO should closely monitor the situation in Afrin through regular briefings to the North Atlantic Council, and that contacts with the Turkish authorities should stress that their operation must respect international law, including the principles of proportionality and necessity.

Jean Asselborn showed particular concern for humanitarian access and the suffering of the civilian population.