The EU aims at 5.8 billion euros worth of funding to avert further chaos in Syria

The EU and its partners pledged 5,8 billion euros to help Syria face its humanitarian needs and reconstruction process after the fall of Bashar al Assad‘s regime. The European Commission, alongside its Member States and international donors list, including the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC), the Agency for Development and Cooperation of Switzerland, the Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator (OCHA), gather 4.2 billion euros in grants and 1.6 billion in loans.

“We welcome the number of positive steps the transitional government took over the past three months,” the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas, stressed by opening the 9th Conference supporting Syria.

The meeting was the first one held under a new Damascus-seated regime and was backgrounded the recent escalation of violence that sparked in the coastal area, where the new rulers’ troops stifled the Bashar al-Assad sect fighters. More than one thousand people have been killed in two days of clashes.

The Conference was the venue for the EU to call on the new leadership to act for an inclusive transition. The recent escalation of violence “has highlighted the fragility of this transition; we strongly condemn the attacks, particularly those targeting civilians”, Kallas further stressed while welcoming the establishment of an independent investigative commission to look into these acts while also suggesting the involvement of the United Nations in gathering evidence.

The European Commission pledged 2,5 billion euros for 2025 and 2026. The amount is shared with 720 million euros to support 2025 the population inside Syria and Syrians who have been sheltered in Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq. Another 600 million euros will be devoted to the same objective. The EU Executive also pledge 1.1 billion to support Syrian refugees and vulnerable host communities in Türkiye until 2026.

The financial support is linked to relieve sanctions on the Syrian economy. The EU remains cautious and delivers on a progress-based approach. The suspension of the easing of sanctions is not excluded, and EU Foreign Affairs Ministers will exchange views in April to assess whether further decisions are appropriate. The EU Council is also monitoring the respect of human rights and the process through which the new leadership led by former rebels commander Ahmed al-Sharaa wants to hold accountable all the people involved in the Assad-led state apparatus.

“Today, the question was whether this violence is actually showing that we should take a step back, but the discussion among the ministers was that at this moment, if we want to prevent further violence, we need to give the people hope that means access to the banking services, salaries, and companies that can invest and develop the ground for a new life in Syria,” Kallas said.

No agreement was reached on the proposal of the High Representative to raise further military support to Ukraine. The initiative is based on being backed through a coalition of the willing format since Slovakia and Hungary already objected.

Journalists were told that the proposal – still based on an informal document – is gathering “broad support.” The Italian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Antonio Tajani, told journalists that many countries spoke out against it. On the one hand, the North-Eastern bloc is asking for greater commitments towards Ukraine and a more equitable division of efforts between partners.

On the other, the Mediterranean front is holding back and does not agree to use the Gross National Income method to divide the contributions to be paid in proportion to the size of the economies. Kallas’s initiative is not binding but voluntary; therefore, there is no way to force the various countries to respect the quotas. “Right now, the discussion is in the details,” Kallas stressed. She aims to provide Ukraine an additional 40 billion in hardware or financial support. The total amount will nevertheless depend on the participation outreach of the initiative.