Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin commented on the transfer of 53 fuel tanks by the United States from Syria to its bases in Iraq on January 14.
“We were stunned by the brutality of the looting of Syria by the United States openly and frankly,” he said.
In the first half of 2022, more than 80% of Syria’s daily oil production was smuggled out of the country by US forces, according to the Syrian government.
Earlier this month, US troops used 60 tankers and trucks to transport oil and wheat looted in Syria.
Wenbin said these bandit activities are exacerbating the energy crisis and the humanitarian catastrophe in Syria.
He stressed that the Syrian people’s right to life is being ruthlessly trampled on by the United States, adding that with the lack of oil and food, the Syrian people are struggling more to overcome the harsh winter.
He continued: “The level of greed of the United States in stealing resources from Syria is staggering, as is their ‘generosity’ in providing military aid, often in the billions or even tens of billions of dollars.”
He stated: “Give or take, the United States will plunge other countries into chaos and disaster. It is important for Washington that it reap the benefits of its hegemony and other interests.”
He noted that this is the result of the so-called “rule-based system” in the United States.
The Chinese diplomat stressed that the United States should be held accountable for the oil theft.
He concluded by saying that the Syrian people and the international community want an answer and called on Washington to stop trampling on the rule of international law and breaking international rules.
On Saturday, Damascus announced that US forces continue to steal Syrian oil and transport it to their bases in Iraq.
And the official Syrian News Agency reported that “Today, US occupying forces removed tanks of oil they stole from the countryside of Hasakah and headed for northern Iraq through an illegal passage through Mahmudiyah.”
The agency added that the US Army, in cooperation with the Qasd, led a convoy of 53 tanks with stolen Syrian oil through Mahmoudiya’s illegal crossing to their bases in Iraqi territory in batches.
A source: Chinese foreign + Sana
