The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has called on the international community to make a “valiant effort” to help the parties involved in the conflict in Syria to reach a “negotiated political statement.”

Following is the full text of the statement:

CARICOM Statement on Syria

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is closely monitoring the rapidly evolving developments concerning the two-year civil war in Syria, including the recent alarming allegations regarding the use of chemical weapons in that country and said to have resulted in the deaths of over 1000 persons including a large number of children.

CARICOM condemns unreservedly the use of chemical weapons which is a gross contravention of international law including the 1925 Geneva Protocol and the United Nations Chemical Weapons Convention. It also expresses its abhorrence of any such atrocity which would add a horrific dimension to an already brutal and bloody civil war.

CARICOM deplores the rising toll on civilians – over 100,000 persons have been killed and some 2 million Syrians have become refugees – and is concerned that any escalation of the protracted conflict can lead to a conflagration in a volatile region as well as exacerbate an already grave humanitarian crisis and increase the loss of life. Consequently, CARICOM believes that the time has come for the international community to make a valiant effort to help the Syrian parties reach a negotiated political settlement to what appears to have become a stalemated conflict.

CARICOM therefore strongly endorses the calls of the UN Secretary General for the situation to be resolved through dialogue and not through the recourse to the use of military force or any other action which would violate international law. The report of the UN investigative team should be awaited in order to determine beyond a shadow of doubt the veracity of the use of chemical weapons. CARICOM calls on all parties involved to work together to bring an end to the conflict.