Exclusive interview with Khaddam: Opposition is solidifyingKhaddam said, in reply to Syrian campaigns that call him a traitor, that “the traitor is the head of the regime,” adding that, “if there is anyone who should be put on trial, it is Bashar Assad.” He also said that the Syrian regime “cannot be reformed and all that is left is to bring it down.” He considered that change in Syria must “mature from the inside” and confirmed that he is not aiming at overthrowing the regime through a military coup.
When asked about his thoughts on the official Syrian replies to his interview with the Al Arabia television station and about his being charged with defecting and corruption, Khaddam replied: “The truth is that the Syrian administration did me a big favor. It revealed the falseness of the constitutional organizations and the inexistence of the party leadership. It was revealed that its role is simply to cover for what Bashar Assad says. The scene of the Syrian Parliament was saddening to the Syrian people who wondered if that parliament represents them… The Syrians know the services I presented to the country. And I ask this: Has criticizing Bashar Assad who led the country to this state become blasphemous? ”
Khaddam went on to say that “a traitor is someone who brings harm to his people and nation. Look at what Assad has done to the Syrian people. He increased corruption and stealing the public’s money without any limits. Then look at where the economic situation is at. More than half of the Syrian population is under the poverty line. Tens of thousands of university graduates have no work. As for foreign affairs: look at the disaster that we have come to. [Assad] took the decision to extend Lahoud’s presidential term and I warned him that Syria cannot handle the consequences of this decision. Here, I reveal that he got an opportunity before United Nations Resolution 1559 to avoid this but it was lost. And now I ask why Bashar Assad changed his position. Look at the consequences of his extending Lahoud’s term: United Nations Resulution 1559 was drafted, Hariri was killed, Syrian troops were taken out of Lebanon humiliated, Syria’s relations with Lebanon were damaged and Syria found itself in regional and international isolation. And I say: Aren’t these harms to the Syrian people? Isn’t this being a traitor? If there is anyone who should be tried, it should be the head of the regime.”
When asked by Abu Najm about how he would topple the regime, he replied: “The Syrian people will overthrow the regime. There is a rapidly growing opposition movement in the country. I do not wish to bring change through a military coup; a coup is one of the most dangerous types of change. But I am working on maturing the circumstances for the Syrians to go down to the streets and do what needs to be done to topple the regime. This is a serious matter.” When asked about whether he was working on establishing an opposition front, Khaddam replied that before his television interview, the problem was that there was no one with enough weight to face the regime. “The Syrian opposition knows my stances as I have been in contact with it until my last day in Syria. The interview increased the opposition’s self-confidence. The opposition forces will unite with one another and I am working on that.” - Asharq al-Awsat, United Kingdom
