[applause] mr. truong: once more, we will by, andovernment of, for the people. ms. clinton: we are stronger together. no matter what, love trumps hate. >> c-span's campaign 2016 continues to read with the first presidential debate, live from hofstra university. beginning at 7:00 with the preview can read that and 8:30, the predebate re-think.

9:00 p.m., live coverage followed by viewer reaction. watch anytime on demand at c-span.org. tomorrow night, we will review the first of the presidential debates with a look at the candidates debating strategies. we will talk to two people have helped test candidates prepare for debates. strategies ofhe hillary clinton and donald trump, tomorrow at 9:00 eastern and pacific on c-span. sunday at 9:00 p.m. eastern, afterwards. process is such a mess, five or six people are going to determine the budget in

the next month. >> he talks about his political philosophy in his book quote but -- "underdog." if the people vote, the key is we are supposed to be a democratic republic or read it doesn't mean you get to win every debate. it just means you have a fair process. if the folks vote for more flowers and you are a is go hock, you lose -- fiscal hawk, you lose. >> now, the syrian foreign minister and the beauty prime minister addressed the un's general assembly. he claims the u.s. for the length and severity of the syrian civil war. this is about 20 minutes. i now give the floor to his

excellency, deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs for the syrian arab republic. >> i have the great pleasure in welcoming the deputy prime minister, and minister of foreign affairs of the syrian republic. i invite him to address the general assembly. president of the 71st session of the general assembly, i would like to congratulate you and

your friendly country fiji on your election as president of the present session of the united nations general assembly. i wish you all success during your presidency which you have promised would be one for the whole house. such a promise, if kept, would strengthen the neutral rule of the president of the general assembly and shed a bright light on the fact that some are trying to conceal. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, as we meet once again, our world is going through a grave and dangerous period. federalism, which we have cautioned against, has continued to grow and gain ground, claiming the lives of more innocent people.

and causing death and destruction as it rages unabated across the world. the blood of syrians was not enough to quench its thirst. it had to go after the citizens of many other countries, including those that have deported and sponsored it. these innocent people are now paying for the mistakes of their government, which have ignored the interests of their people, and adopted shortsighted policies. for more than five years, the syrian people, no matter their affiliations, have paid dearly for the crimes of terrorists who have shed the blood of syrians

and undermined their security, stability, and livelihoods. terrorism has spared no one, targeting even schools, universities, hospitals, places of worship, and infrastructure. everyone knows full well that terrorism would not have spread through my country if it had not been for the support of well-known countries. it's no longer a secret that qatar and saudi arabia have played a part in this, promoting their wahhabist ideology and their fatwas that have nothing to do with islam. they have bragged about supporting terrorism in every

way possible. sending into syria thousands of mercenaries equipped with the most sophisticated weapons. meanwhile, turkey has opened its border to let in tens of thousands of terrorists from all around the world and has provided them with logistical support and training camps under the supervision of turkish and western intelligence. it is even supplied these terrorists with military support. i would like to refer you to a study published seven months ago by a german institute, the ferro center for studies. according to the study, more

than 360,000 foreign terrorists from 83 countries have entered syria since april 2011. by the end of 2015, the syrian army was able to kill 95,000 of those. while 120,000 returned home or traveled to other countries. we in syria are combating terrorism from the whole world. every time a syrian kills another foreign terrorist, it spares the life of many innocent people who could have died in a terrorist act carried out by the same terrorists returning to his country. anyone who concedes to this fact

must be held responsible to the spread of terrorism and the increasing numbers of victims. our army deserves to be commended and supported and must never the target of schemes and lies. the terrorist campaign against my country is taking place in full view of a polarized world. there are those who have chosen to support international law and the principles of the charter while others have decided to turn a blind eye to the truth to support, finance and armed terrorists. they choose to refer to these terrorists as moderate armed opposition. though there is irrefutable evidence they have committed

against syrians crimes and massacres no less barbaric than those of isil or al qaeda. some consider people who take up arms against the state and its citizens legitimate opposition as long as they are inferior. the exact same people on any other day and in any other country would be considered terrorists or outlaws. despite all of this, all syrians , the people, the army, and the government, will not relent in their fight. they are determined more than ever before to eliminate terrorism wherever it exists in the country. they are well aware that their homeland will cease to exist --

our belief in victory is even greater now that the syrian-arab army is making great strides in its war against terrorism. with the support of the true friends of the syrian people. notably, the russian federation, iran, and the lebanese national resistance. such support has strengthened the resilience of syrians and alleviated their suffering. we hope other countries will wake up and realize, before it is too late, the danger that threatens us all. we have always welcomed all international efforts -- we stress the need to coordinate such efforts with the government of the syrian-arab republic.

the syrian-arab army that has been combating terrorism on the ground for more than five years. without such coordination, any action would be considered a breach of sovereignty, a flagrant interference and a violation of the principles and purpose of the charter. without such coordination, any action will fall short of achieving results. in this regard, the syrian government condems in the strong as possible terms the attack launched by american warplanes on the syrian army site in the vicinity of the airport on september 17. this attack allowed isil dig in control of the site.

the syrian government holds the united states fully responsible for this aggression. the facts show it was an intentional attack and not an error, even if the united states claims otherwise. this cowardly aggression clearly proves that the u.s. and its allies are complicit with isil and other terrorist organizations. we also reiterate our condemnation of turkish incursion into syrian territories, under the pretext of countering terrorism. this is a flagrant aggression and must be stopped immediately. terrorism cannot be fought by replacing one terrorist organization with another.

one cannot but wonder, how can a state that has been the main point of entry for terrorists and weapons into syria claim to be fighting terrorism? how can there be genuine and effective international counterterrorism cooperation when a relevant security council dead letter?main mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, since the onset of the crisis in 2011, the syrian government has declared that any solution must follow two parallel tracks. counterterrorism and a political track to an intra-syrian dialogue that allows syrians to

determine the future of their country without foreign interference. all solutions dictated from the outside are categorically rejected by the syrian people. likewise, any political solution will not succeed in the absence of the necessary foundation and condition for its implementation, including intensified counterterrorism efforts and progress and the national reconciliation process, which has proven successful and a number of areas around the syria. despite all of these hurdles created by regional and western states, those states that decide on behalf of the self-proclaimed syrian

opposition, despite all of these hurdles, we have always been open to a political track that would stem the bloodshed and end the prolonged suffering of syrians. we reiterate our commitment to move forward with the geneva track under the auspices of the united nation. we recall our constructive position regarding the political solution. such a solution must be based on respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of syria and the unity of its people. it should begin by establishing a government of national unity, comprising representatives from the government and the opposition in all its factions, and task with creating a constitution drafting committee. once the new constitution is approved by the syrians, through a referendum, parliamentary elections would

follow, and a new government would be formed under the new constitution. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, it is truly regrettable that some are exploiting the humanitarian tragedy and suffering of syrians, especially in terrorist-held areas. it is regrettable that some are politicizing such suffering to achieve certain goals that have nothing to do with humanitarian principles or the interests of syrians themselves. some countries continue to shed crocodile tears over the situation of syrians in some areas, accusing the syrian government of employing a policy of sieges and starvation. all the while, these same countries continue to support and arm the terrorists that

besiege civilians in these areas from the inside and use them as human shields and prevent the delivery of humanitarian aid or confiscate it. ladies and gentlemen, make no mistake. no one is more committed than the syrian government to ending the suffering of syrians and providing them with a life of dignity, wherever they may be and without exception. this is a duty and not a favor. we will spare no effort to that end, including in cooperation with the united nations. despite all the difficulties we are facing as a result of the systematic destruction by externally supported terrorist organizations, and despite the unilateral coercive economic and

financial measures imposed on the syrian people by the same parties that falsely claim to have the interests of syrians in mind -- such unilateral measures have adversely affected many vital sectors in the country, including health, education, and energy. mr. president, ladies and gentlemen, syria is confronting mercenary terrorists on its territory today, but it has long confronted a different kind of terrorism. the terrorism of israel, that has occupied a precious part of our land and the syrian golan since june 4, 1967. our people continue to suffer as

a result of israel's oppressive and aggressive practices. these practices are no longer confined to the occupied golan and are currently affecting the security and life of syrians in the southern part of the country. israel is intervening militarily and directly to assist in every way possible of the terrorist organizations operating in that area. syria calls on the international community to put an effective end to all these practices and to compel israel to implement relevant united nations resolutions, particularly resolution 497 on the occupied syrian golan. the united nations should also compel israel to allow the palestinian people to enjoy

their inalienable rights, including the establishment of their independent state with jerusalem as its capital, and the return of palestine refugees to their land in accordance with internationally recognized resolutions. syria reaffirms that israel's aggressive policies do not only threaten syria, but the whole region, especially given israel's nuclear arsenal. we have stressed time and again the need to compel israel to join the treaty on the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons and other treaties on weapons of mass destruction and to subject its nuclear installations to the oversight of the international atomic energy agency. syria stresses the right of state to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. we have always called for creating a wmd-free zone in the middle east. in fact, we have efficiently and responsibly eliminated all

chemical weapons in syria in cooperation with the joint mission of the organizations for the prohibition of chemical weapons and the united nations. in this regard, syria reiterates its readiness to continue cooperation with the joint investigation mechanism, as well as to continue the syrian-relevant investigations in this regard. mr. president, we congratulate cuba and iran on reaching agreements to lift the embargo imposed on them, and we look forward to their implementation. we renew our call for removing the illegal economic measures imposed on the syrian people and on other independent people in the world. notably, the people of the dprk, venezuela, and belarus.

in closing, we wish you and your peoples lasting security and prosperity. we hope our organization will be able to regain the trust of the people by holding or upholding the provisions of the charter, which calls for respecting the sovereignty and independence of member states and ensuring noninterference in their internal affairs. this principle, if implemented, would lay the foundation for genuine and fair relations among nations after the greed and arrogance of some have shaken them to their core. thank you. [applause] >> i than the deputy prime minister and minister for foreign affairs and expatriates of the syrian arab republic for his statement.