Syria

EU and Syria

The fall of the Assad regime on 8 December 2024 marks a historic moment and an opportunity for the Syrian people, who have endured immense suffering and demonstrated extraordinary resilience in their pursuit of dignity, freedom, and justice. All Syrians, in the country and the diaspora, should have an opportunity to reunify, stabilise and rebuild their country. 

In this critical period, the European Union (EU) stands with the Syrian people and is ready to step up its engagement to support an inclusive transition, help address humanitarian needs and efforts towards economic recovery and future reconstruction.

On 19 December 2024, the European Council adopted conclusions on the situation in Syria which define the EU’s current position moving forward. The EU believes in the importance of an inclusive and Syrian-led political process. This process should meet the aspirations of the Syrian people and be in line with the core principles of UN Security Council Resolution 2254.

EU assistance to the Syrian population

The Syrian crisis continues to generate humanitarian needs unparalleled in scale, severity, and complexity with profound repercussions for the overall stability of the region. It also remains one of the largest humanitarian crises of our times and the world’s largest refugee crisis. 

The EU has spearheaded the international response to the Syrian crisis since it began in 2011. It has mobilised its political and financial tools to support the Syrian people inside Syria as well as Syrian refugees and host communities in neighbouring countries (Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Türkiye). Together with its Member States, the EU has been the largest donor in response to the crisis, having mobilised EUR 35 billion since 2011 in humanitarian, development, economic and stabilisation assistance.

The EU continues to provide direct support to the Syrian population, both inside Syria and to Syrian refugees in the neighbouring countries, as well as to host communities, via several instruments: Annual Special Measures under the funding instrument NDICI – Global Europe, the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis and the Facility for Refugees in Türkiye. The EU intends to step up this support reflecting the new reality in Syria.

Brussels Conferences on “Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region”

The EU has been at the forefront of the international efforts to mobilise funds, to keep Syria high on the political agenda and to support Syrian civil society having convened eight international donor conferences in Brussels since 2017.

The overarching objective of the Brussels Conferences was to continue supporting the Syrian population and neighbouring countries hosting Syrian refugees and to mobilise the international community in support of a comprehensive and credible political solution to the Syria conflict, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254. The Conferences also offered a platform bringing representatives from Syrian, regional and international non-governmental and civil society organisations together with policy makers during the “Days of Dialogue”: 

The Brussels VIII Conference raised a significant level of pledges (7.5 billion EUR for 2024 and beyond), showing the convening power of the EU and commitment of donors to address the Syrian crisis. 

The EU will organise the 9^th edition of the Brussels Conference on 17 March 2025 to support an inclusive transition in Syria. The event will be instrumental in mobilising funds from the international community to address the immediate needs of all Syrian people, including in the neighbouring countries, to support Syria’s recovery and first steps towards reconstruction.

Further information

Factsheets available to download