The European Union continues to lift economic sanctions on Syria and pledges further aid in a statement issued one year after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime.
The departure of the Assad government ended decades of dictatorship that resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths, disappearances, and mass displacement, Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Policy, said.
In the year since the regime’s collapse, the European Union has suspended and later entirely lifted economic sanctions, supporting Syria’s recovery efforts, her statement noted.
In March, the EU hosted the Brussels IX Conference on Syria, announcing €3.4 billion in pledges to address urgent humanitarian and socio-economic needs in Syria and neighbouring countries.
Syria’s transitional authorities and representatives of civil society, alongside the EU, organised the country’s first 'Day of Dialogue' in November, bringing together more than 300 participants to discuss support for ongoing changes in the country.
Syrian authorities have signed a new Constitutional Declaration and established commissions to address transitional justice and the issue of missing persons, EU officials declared.
Security and humanitarian challenges persist
Over 16.5 million people in Syria remain in need of humanitarian aid, the EU says. Continued cooperation with international organisations, including the United Nations, is expected to help uphold commitments made under the new Constitutional Declaration, such as principles around inclusion and protection.
The EU voices concerns on the stability and security of the country however. Violence has erupted in various parts of Syria in recent months. Thousands have died in massacres against the Druze in the south, and the Alawite community in the western coast of the country.
The EU reiterated its position against foreign military intervention and called for respect for Syria's sovereignty as set out in UN Security Council resolution 497 (1981).
Since the start of the conflict in 2011, EU institutions and member states have together provided over €38 billion in assistance for Syrians in the country and the wider region, according to the latest figures.
The EU officials vowed the EU would maintain support for humanitarian needs and for Syrians’ efforts towards a more democratic society.
