cused him of obstructing political, economic, and administrative reform.
Former Syrian Vice President Abdel Halim Khaddam emphasized that President Al-Assad had rejected all attempts at political, economic, and administrative reform. Subsequently, Khaddam became convinced that the process of development and reform would not progress and thus submitted his resignation. He advised Assad not to repeat Saddam’s mistakes and urged him to encourage opposition forces to seek support from the United States in order to change the regime. The full text of Khaddam’s interview on the “Al Arabiya” satellite channel revealed President Assad’s refusal to pursue political reform, his initial call for economic reform, and subsequent abandonment of it in favor of advocating for administrative reform.
Khaddam stated that he presented a study to the party leadership on multiple occasions until he became convinced that the development and reform process would not advance. This led him to make the decision to resign.
He further discussed the reasons behind his resignation, highlighting that the discussions lasted for over a year. Despite the convening of the Qatari Conference, the necessary decisions were not made, particularly after weekly meetings with Assad. During each meeting, the focus was on external pressure and the internal situation, with the realization that Syria could not address external pressure and the internal situation in the manner employed, especially since the people were marginalized and their freedoms restricted.
Regarding his final meeting with Hariri, Khaddam mentioned their conversation about his relationship with the Syrian leadership. He advised Hariri to leave, especially after Hariri informed him that Lebanese security forces had withdrawn, leaving him with only six out of 60 members. Khaddam regarded this as a sign and urged him to go away. Hariri wanted to resolve the issues without engaging in a confrontation with the Syrian leadership. However, he remained determined not to comply with the matter of elections in Beirut and Lebanon. Khaddam noted that Hariri was tense during the meeting.
Khaddam stated, “It is true that the opposition forces are not significant, although all parties are patriotic and loyal to the country. They have not taken any actions that harm the country, including the Muslim Brotherhood.”
He continued, “The country was like a tinderbox. We need to remove all sulfur matches through dialogue to prevent ignition. Even administrative reform requires popular support, and bold decisions are necessary for the future. National unity is needed to protect the reform process, which is equivalent to safeguarding the country from external pressure.”
Khaddam emphasized that he chose the country over the regime.
He stated that the mobile phone franchise had been awarded to a relative and a friend, resulting in the company generating $700 million in revenue. This means that one-sixth of the budget goes to individuals close to the president, such as cousins and friends.
He further expressed, “I have no choice but to depart from this system that I dedicated a long time to building. We have lost everything in just five years.”
He highlighted that following the collapse of the Soviet Union, there were significant failures in principles, ideologies, and lifestyles. Additionally, there was a revolution in the field of technology, the implementation of globalization policies by the American administration, and the emergence of issues that had remained dormant during the era of the two superpowers. These issues included national, religious, and sectarian fundamentalism. The world was moving in a different direction from the Cold War, leading him to realize that Arabs needed to rehabilitate themselves and their systems. He emphasized the importance of considering the people as the source of power and granting freedoms since they drive progress. He mentioned that with the transformation of communist parties into liberal entities and China’s shift from being the largest communist country to an unrelated stage in Marxism, it was evident that living in an era with outdated data was no longer feasible. In Syria, they had to confront the new world. Keeping information from the people was no longer possible, as globalization had become a reality across all fields. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, they had become exposed to new challenges and realities.
Dialogue with America
The dialogue with America revealed that he had presented a strategy for Syrian foreign relations to President Assad. He called for adopting a policy of dialogue rather than confrontation with the United States, while emphasizing the need to strongly adhere to national principles. Khaddam expressed his awareness that compromising these principles would lead to an endless series of concessions.
During his speech to party cadres, he disclosed the release of necessary freedoms, which the leadership considered a departure from party ideology.
He stated, “I am not the decision maker. I was part of the decision. Our foreign policy is a source of pride, while everyone is discussing the flaws in domestic policy.”
In one of the meetings to study resolution 1559, he revealed that the strength of the home front was mentioned. In response, he raised the question of what they had done to strengthen the country. Syrians had no role in power except for climbing positions, opportunism, and being dominated by agencies. He further highlighted that ten people possessed more wealth than the assets of the Syrian Treasury. He called for serious decisions to address internal grievances and stressed the importance of protecting national unity, including amending the Constitution.
Repeating Saddam’s mistake
He warned against repeating Saddam’s mistake and emphasized the need to avoid the mistakes made by Saddam Hussein, who closed his mind and ears to dialogue. He pointed out that as a result, the foreign Iraqi opposition, which is an ally of Syria and Iran, provided political cover for the American war on Iraq. It was crucial not to provide any justification for any Syrian citizen to prioritize their personal interests over the nation’s interests. The Iraqi scenario should not be repeated.
He believed that a similar scenario to Iraq was unlikely in Syria, and that the United States would not resort to military force against the country. However, he expressed concerns about the situation of pressure and isolation that Syria was experiencing, along with constant threats.
He called for the return of all individuals to Syria and the formation of a popular consensus to protect the country. He questioned the consequences of preventing tens of thousands of citizens from returning and how it could generate hatred and harm national unity. He emphasized that the country was more important than the regime.
Regarding the daily demonstrations, he described them as not reflecting the true situation in the country, recalling the millionth demonstrations under Saddam’s regime, where people did not express their national convictions. He suggested that the regime needed to change its convictions and accept that the people are the true source of power.