UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher said Syria has seen real but fragile progress, calling on the international community to continue providing support to enable the country to keep confronting hardships and challenges.

Fletcher made the remarks during a briefing to the UN Security Council on May 15, noting that while violence has declined, sanctions have been eased, and humanitarian access has improved, funding levels are falling faster than needs.

Fletcher stressed that delaying recovery will ultimately cost more lives and more money.

He explained that nearly two-thirds of Syria’s population will need assistance this year, most of them women, girls, and children. However, under current funding levels, only half of those in need will be reached.

He added that the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz has driven up food and fuel costs, with immediate consequences for communities already living on the brink.

Nearly halfway through the year, Syria’s humanitarian response appeal remains only slightly more than 16% funded, with nearly 90% of that funding coming from the United States, European countries, Japan, and Canada.

In this context, Fletcher said the UN was ready to receive funding from other countries around the world, explaining that the funding shortfall forced the World Food Programme to cut its emergency food assistance in Syria by 50%. It also forced the agency to suspend its nationwide bread support program, which had provided support to millions of people every day.

315,000 Refugees Return in 2026

The Under-Secretary-General said investment in recovery is essential to achieving stability, noting that more than 3.4 million refugees and internally displaced people returned in 2025, and that the trend is continuing with more than 315,000 refugees returning during the first four months of this year.

Fletcher explained that the growing number of returnees, along with strengthened institutional stability and improved humanitarian access, opens the way for a shift from emergency response toward a more sustainable path.

He said these developments represent a real opportunity for success, but achieving it depends on seizing the moment and supporting priority sectors, enabling Syrians, including returnees, to rebuild their lives with dignity.

The Syrian government has clear priorities to move the country from long-term dependence on humanitarian aid toward sustainable, nationally led solutions, an approach that deserves strong international support, according to Fletcher’s remarks. He stressed the humanitarian community’s commitment to working to make Syria a successful model for effective humanitarian action.

He added that the international community making the right decisions would give Syrians an opportunity to achieve security, justice, and sustainable development. He warned, however, that failure to fund the humanitarian phase and support the transition toward recovery and stability could worsen existing gaps and turn them into crises that are difficult to contain in the future.

For his part, Deputy UN Special Envoy for Syria Claudio Cordone affirmed that Syrians continue to face harsh living conditions, contributing to rising protests and increasing waves of criticism in several areas.

He explained that the United Nations supports the government’s efforts to attract investment and revitalize the business environment, but Syria’s recovery and reconstruction prospects still face major challenges amid ongoing sanctions, along with the extended economic and institutional effects left by previous sanctions.

UN Reduces Food Aid to Syria

The World Food Programme announced a 50% cut in its emergency food assistance to Syria, reducing the number of beneficiaries from 1.3 million people to 650,000 people this May.

The UN program also suspended, on May 13, its bread support across Syria, which it said had provided support to millions of people every day.

The UN program attributed the reduction in its operations in Syria to a severe funding shortage.

Syria Moves Toward Economic Partnerships

Syria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ibrahim Olabi, said the total number of refugees and displaced people returning to Syria has exceeded 3.5 million, alongside continued efforts to address and end internal displacement.

On the economic front, he said Syria has begun attracting billions of dollars in investment opportunities as it moves from recovery to building strategic partnerships, according to remarks carried by the Syrian Arab News Agency, SANA.

He pointed to the convening of the first Syrian Investment Forum, the entry into force of the maritime investment project with Chevron and UCC, and the signing of a memorandum of understanding with TotalEnergies, QatarEnergy, and ConocoPhillips to explore an offshore block off the Syrian coast.

He also noted the launch of the first electronic payment trial in cooperation with Visa and Mastercard, in a step aimed at strengthening Syria’s integration into the global economy.

Olabi also affirmed continued work to expand regional and international partnerships, explaining that the past period witnessed the restoration of the full implementation of the Syrian-European cooperation agreement, along with strengthened cooperation with the United Nations and donor countries, including receiving a delegation of 23 donor countries at the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Damascus.