{"id":690337,"date":"2026-01-12T04:49:11","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T04:49:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/690337\/"},"modified":"2026-01-12T04:49:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T04:49:11","slug":"the-eu-has-an-interest-in-helping-the-syrian-people-rebuild-their-country","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/690337\/","title":{"rendered":"The EU has an interest in helping the Syrian people rebuild their country"},"content":{"rendered":"

Syria\u2019s geographical proximity to Europe has enabled a fostering of deep cultural, societal and economic links between the two that goes back centuries. Not only is Syria located less than 2,000 kilometres from the continent\u2019s eastern-most flank, the two also share a historically significant body of water: the Mediterranean Sea.<\/p>\n

In recent years, however, this proximity became a lifeline for some Syrians and a source of political drama for a number of European countries, as the outbreak of Syria\u2019s civil war in 2011 drove more than one million of its citizens into the continent, polarising its societies, driving up xenophobia in right-wing circles and reshaping its politics.<\/p>\n

But the end of the war, after the fall of Bashar Al Assad\u2019s government in December 2024, has since provided the leaders of both entities with an opportunity to open a new chapter in bilateral relations. This is the context in which to understand the importance of a high-level EU delegation\u2019s meeting<\/a> with Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara in Damascus last Friday.<\/p>\n

That this delegation was led by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa is instructive, as it highlights just how important Syria\u2019s reconstruction after 14 years of civil war is for the 27-nation bloc\u2019s future stability and prosperity.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Opinion: Europe’s fresh engagement with Syria is welcome<\/p>\n

From the EU\u2019s perspective, the safe and voluntary return of Syrian refugees remains a strategic imperative \u2013 for which stabilising Syria is essential. By engaging with Damascus and providing reconstruction support \u2013 as it did by offering $722 million in aid from 2026 to 2027 \u2013 it has positioned itself as a partner in this process.<\/p>\n

The EU will also establish a \u201ctechnical assistance hub\u201d in the Syrian Foreign Ministry, as The National revealed this month<\/a>, with the aim of strengthening proficiency among the country\u2019s civil servants. The relaunch of a Syria-EU co-operation agreement to enable access to the European market is also in the offing.<\/p>\n

For Mr Al Shara, all of this represents an economic lifeline<\/a>. The President needs investment but also funding to rebuild infrastructure, which the World Bank estimates could cost up to $216 billion. The EU\u2019s package, which covers humanitarian aid, recovery efforts and bilateral co-operation, goes some way in addressing these needs.<\/p>\n

Despite its diplomatic wins, Syria\u2019s path to stability is expected to be long and fraught<\/p>\n

Friday\u2019s meeting follows recent US-mediated talks in Paris that yielded a breakthrough in Syria-Israel relations<\/a>, with the two neighbours agreeing to establish a mechanism for intelligence sharing, military de-escalation, diplomacy and commercial opportunities. While the durability of these agreements rests on their successful implementation \u2013 predicated in large part on Israeli co-operation \u2013 they represent a promising shift in bilateral relations following decades of hostility.<\/p>\n

But despite these diplomatic wins, Syria\u2019s path to stability is expected to be long and fraught. It could take years for Damascus to create the stable political and economic conditions necessary to secure the trust of hundreds of thousands of refugees still living in the West.<\/p>\n

Recent clashes<\/a> in Aleppo between the Syrian army and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces underscore persistent fault lines. The days-long fighting, which displaced thousands of civilians from the country\u2019s second-largest city, highlights the need for Mr Al Shara to credibly follow up on his pledge to build an inclusive country that accommodates the interests of its myriad minorities, including the Kurdish people.<\/p>\n

The EU can help. Aside from providing aid, it can use its diplomatic influence to push for dialogue among Syria\u2019s various ethnic and sectarian groups, support inclusive institutions and make progress on minority rights a condition for further assistance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Syria\u2019s geographical proximity to Europe has enabled a fostering of deep cultural, societal and economic links between the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":690338,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5174],"tags":[2000,299,5187,391,60066,1426],"class_list":{"0":"post-690337","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-eu","8":"tag-eu","9":"tag-europe","10":"tag-european","11":"tag-opinion","12":"tag-opinion-team","13":"tag-story"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115880326921071111","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/690337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=690337"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/690337\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/690338"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=690337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=690337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=690337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}