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The EU is hoping to rally further support for Syria’s fragile transition, days after sectarian violence erupted in the country’s coastal regions.
ADVERTISEMENTSyria’s foreign minister Asaad al-Shibani will join an annual EU conference on Syria in Brussels on Monday, the first to be held since the transitional government in Damascus was sworn in following the toppling of the al-Assad regime in December.European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, top diplomat Kaja Kallas, and EU foreign ministers are expected to join the talks, which will focus on Syria’s political transition, economic recovery and reconstruction after 14 years of civil war. The bloc hopes to unveil additional funding to support the country as it “turns a page in its history”, a senior EU official said, adding that a potential role for the European Investment Bank (EIB) in Syria’s reconstruction is under consideration.The official also said that with Syrians facing a “harsh reality”, including electricity and water shortages as well as dire humanitarian needs, there are fears the US’s sweeping aid freeze could exacerbate the crisis and that European and other international donors may need to plug the gap.Brussels has expressed support for the de facto authorities’ efforts to transition Syria towards a stable future. Last month, the bloc lifted a series of sanctions on key industries such as the energy, transport and financial sectors in a bid to help the war-torn country’s economic recovery and reconstruction.It has also welcomed steps by the interim government to ensure all strands of Syrian society are represented in the transition, including through an agreement struck last week with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which controls the resource-rich north-east of the country, to integrate with government forces.But a senior EU diplomat said that the eruption of sectarian violence earlier this month in the coastal Latakia and Tartus Provinces, strongholds of support for former dictator Bashar al-Assad, has provided a “strong warning of the fragility and complexity of this transition”.Armed groups linked to the Sunni Islamist-led government carried out the extrajudicial killing of 803 people in response to attacks by remnants of al-Assad’s force, a war monitoring group said last week. Other reports put the number of estimated killings at 1,200.The UN has verified 111 of those killings, and says “entire families” were killed in what appeared to be sectarian executions in predominantly Alawite areas.Speaking ahead of the conference on Monday morning, the EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said “hope in Syria” was “hanging by a thread.”The interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has promised to set up an independent committee to investigate the killings, and the EU has called for a “swift, transparent and impartial” probe.Another senior EU official described the events as “horrible sectarian violence targeting one specific community in coastal areas” and called for an “investigation and preventative measures”.It has left Brussels treading a delicate line between statements of support for the transition under al-Sharaa and an increasing sense of nervousness that the recent instability could trigger a further spiral of violence.The main rebel group which toppled al-Assad under al-Sharaa’s leadership, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), remains listed as a terrorist organisation by the EU.ADVERTISEMENTEU eyes role in transitionThe conference is expected to see the EU make a further financial pledge towards Syria, which one EU official said should be to the tune of the €2.12 billion committed in last year’s conference.A potential role for the EIB in the country’s reconstruction – which according to estimates could cost between €230 and €370 billion – is also on the table.”We also hope countries in the region, including the Gulf region, can push a bit further on the economic side,” one EU official said. Regional states are already engaging: Qatar has begun supplying Syria with natural gas via Jordan to tackle the country’s electricity shortage according to reports.While the EU has already taken first steps towards supporting Syria’s economic recovery with the lifting of sanctions, the US is yet to follow suit. ADVERTISEMENTSuch a decision from the Trump administration would be “enormous” in terms of easing the pressure on Syria’s economy, one EU official said, but added that the initial rolling back of EU sanctions is already providing prospects for European companies to return and invest in Syria.Also likely on the table will be the Syrian diaspora in Europe and the future possibility for their return. EU member states have already mulled how they can support Syrians in Europe who express a wish to return home to do so, including through “go-and-see” visits to allow Syrians to return to assess the situation in their home country without losing their protected status.A recent UNHCR survey found that 27% of Syrians that have sought refuge outside the country now express a desire to return home within the next year. That figure stood at 2% before the regime’s fall.ADVERTISEMENT
