Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they recognise President Bashar al-Assad as the <i>de jure</i> President of Syria.

The British Government recognises nation states and not governments. Assad has forfeited his legitimacy and any plausible claim to be part of Syria’s future. A transition away from Assad, to a more inclusive government that represents all Syrians is what the 2012 Geneva communiqué envisages, and this is what we will continue to work towards.