Brussels 15.06.2023 “…I draw hope from the continuing commitment of refugee-hosting countries in the region” said during opening speech the EU top diplomat Josep Borrell at the Ministerial session of the VII Brussels conference on the future of Syria and the region.

The overarching objective of the Brussels Conferences is to ensure continued support to the Syrian people, both in Syria and in the wider region, by mobilising the international community in support of a comprehensive and credible political solution to the Syria conflict, in line with UN Security Council resolution 2254.

As was the case at previous years’ conferences, Brussels VII will equally address critical humanitarian and resilience issues affecting Syrians in Syria and neighbouring countries, and those which impact communities hosting Syrian refugees in the region.

The Conference will thus renew the international community’s political and financial support for Syria’s neighbours, particularly Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, as well as Egypt and Iraq.

“Thank you so much to all of them for doing right on behalf of the Syrian refugees” the EU diplomat continued. “Even as needs rise and tensions mount, these states continue to provide generously for nearly seven million Syrian refugees. This is certainly a heavy burden. While supporting refugee-hosting countries in their difficult work, we also need to defuse tensions and to avoid the exploitation of the presence of refugees for political ends. We cannot set aside the need for a long-term solution to the refugee situation. We need to work positively for solutions. So we will continue to support all attempts to prevail on the Syrian regime, which has the primary responsibility for ensuring the conditions for voluntary, safe, sustainable and dignified returns, and make sure that these conditions are monitored by the international community.

“I draw hope as well from the continuing generosity of the international community, both to the Syrians in Syria but also to the refugees and their host communities. This generosity was witnessed yet again as recently as March of this year, when we gathered in Brussels to raise pledges for the victims of the earthquake which struck the region in February.

“This brings me to the immediate purpose of today’s Conference. Our first task is to gather fresh pledges of support for the Syrian people as they continue to suffer the effects of more than a decade of conflict, economic collapse, corruption and repression. We cannot forget either the needs of Syrian refugees living in neighbouring states – in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Iraq – and the needs of their host communities. We must maintain the hope that the Syrian people, and the region, place in all of us”.

Borrell has underlined that the it is needed to ensure that pledges of assistance remain substantial.

“I am pleased to confirm the pledge I made last year on behalf of the European Union of €1,5 billion for the benefit of Syrians in Syria, and of refugees and their host communities in the region, for this calendar year 2023.

“I am also able to pledge that for calendar year 2024 the European Union will make available €560 million…”

A Day of Dialogue will be held on the preceding day bringing together civil society from Syria and beyond, decision makers, and operational partners to engage in dialogue on Syria and the region as well as on its humanitarian and resilience challenges.

A special Donor Conference was held earlier this year to support the people in Türkiye and Syria in the wake of February’s devastating earthquake. Brussels VII remains the main pledging event this year for Syria and all its neighbouring countries.

Through the Day of Dialogue, the Conference also provides an interactive platform for dialogue with civil society and NGOs active in Syria and the region.