A call for Syrian refugees to return to their country has been made by the country’s new Prime Minister Mohammed Al Bashir, in an exclusive interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera.

“One of the main objectives of the new government is to return to their country the millions of Syrian refugees abroad, because their experience and human capital will allow Syria to flourish again,” Al Bashir stressed, adding: “I appeal to our compatriots who are abroad. Syria is a free country that has regained its dignity and pride. Turn around.”

The goal of the new Syrian government is “to restore stability and security in all cities of the country. We are Muslims, but the misbehavior of some Islamist groups has led many in the West to identify Muslims with terrorism. There has been misbehavior and a lack of understanding. The meaning of Islam, which is a religion of justice, was misunderstood. We belong to Islam and, precisely for this reason, we will guarantee the rights of all peoples and inhabitants of Syria.”

Concerns about the economy

The interim Prime Minister appeared concerned about the economy. “The economic situation is very problematic. One US dollar buys 35,000 of our coins. We don’t have foreign currency for loans and bonds, but we still don’t have the overall figures available,” he said.

Regarding the duration of the new government, Al Bashir said: “We will only stay until March next year. The financial debt is huge and the challenge is gigantic, but we have the experience of Idlib, where we succeeded. A region is not the same thing as the whole country, but we can improve Syria. It will take time, but we will succeed.”

At the same time, he said that there are bounties on persons responsible for crimes committed during the revolution that took place in 2011, “people who for decades disappeared thousands of citizens in prisons.” “In the majority of cases, their responsibility is proven by international organizations and NGOs. They will be judged according to the current legislation,” al-Bashir said.

Finally, about the foreign policy that the new government means to pursue, Mohammed al-Bashir responded to the Italian envoy: “From the beginning of the military operations we appealed to countries such as Iraq, the People’s Republic of China, and others to explain that our revolution was aimed at liberating the Syria from Bashar al-Assad. They understood us. Accordingly, we have no problem with any state, party, or faction that has kept away from Assad’s bloody regime.”

Finally, the new Syrian prime minister did not respond to a Corriere della Sera question asking him to clarify whether “they are willing to sign peace with Israel and at the same time whether they consider Iran, Hezbollah, and Russia as enemies.”