European Union Insists on Its Three ‘Noes’ in Syria

Josep Borrell. EPA
Josep Borrell. EPA
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European Union Insists on Its Three ‘Noes’ in Syria

Josep Borrell. EPA
Josep Borrell. EPA

The European Union has reconfirmed rejection to normalization with the Syrian regime, to reconstruction and to lifting of sanctions until a political solution in line with UN Security Council resolution 2254 is firmly underway.

“Yesterday marked 11 years since the beginning of the tragic and bloody conflict in Syria,” said High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell.

“Unfortunately, the conflict continues still today, and the humanitarian needs are at their highest with 14.6 million Syrian people in need of assistance inside and outside of the country. Syrian refugees constitute the largest displacement crisis in the world with 5.7 million registered refugees. Another 6.9 million Syrian nationals are displaced within Syria.”

He went on saying that “the Syrian people remain a priority for the European Union. The international community must keep up the search for a durable and comprehensible political solution in Syria, and the European Union remains fully committed to this goal.”

“At their meeting with UN Special Envoy Geir Pedersen at the Foreign Affairs Council on 24 January, EU Foreign Ministers restated their unity and reconfirmed the EU’s position: no normalization with the Syrian regime, no reconstruction and no lifting of sanctions until a political solution in line with UN Security Council resolution 2254 is firmly underway.

At the same time, the European Union continues to support the efforts of UN Special Envoy Pedersen, including his “steps-for-steps” approach, and remains committed to the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Syrian state.”

Borrell noted that on 10 May, “the European Union will co-chair with the UN a sixth Brussels Conference on Supporting the Future of Syria and the region, with the participation of governments, international organizations and Syrian civil society.”

The European Union and its Member States remain the largest provider of international aid and deliver humanitarian, stabilization, and resilience assistance inside Syria and in neighboring countries.

Last year the EU as a whole pledged €3.7 billion in total for 2021 and beyond. Since 2011, the EU and its Member States have mobilized over €25 billion for the conflict in Syria, according to Borrell.

“Eleven years have passed on the US-backed terrorist aggression on Syria that mainly aimed to obstruct its economic development, shed blood of Syrian youths and destroy its achievements and infrastructure,” SANA reported, citing Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates.

On Wednesday, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America released a joint statement on the occasion of the 11-year anniversary of the beginning of the Syrian conflict.

“It is past time for the regime and its enablers, including Russia and Iran, to halt their ruthless attack on the Syrian people,” the statement read.

“The coincidence of this year’s anniversary with the appalling Russian aggression against Ukraine” they said, “highlights Russia’s brutal and destructive behavior in both conflicts.”

“We do not support efforts to normalize relations with the Assad regime and will not normalize relations ourselves, nor lift sanctions or fund reconstruction until there is irreversible progress towards a political solution.

We encourage all parties, especially the Syrian regime, to participate in the March 21 meeting of the Constitutional Committee in good faith and call for the Committee to deliver on its mandate.”



Building in Beirut Southern Suburbs Struck After Israeli Warning

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
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Building in Beirut Southern Suburbs Struck After Israeli Warning

Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike on Dahieh in the southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, April 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

A building in Beirut’s southern suburbs known as Dahieh was struck on Sunday almost an hour after the Israeli army issued an evacuation order to residents of the area.

The Israeli army's spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, earlier said on X that residents should evacuate several buildings in the Hadath neighborhood and move "at least 300 meters away.”

Residents reported hearing gunfire across the area, which they said they believed was intended to warn people to leave, as well as seeing a massive traffic jam on roads leading from the area.

"To everyone located in the building marked in red on the attached map, and the surrounding buildings: you are near facilities belonging to Hezbollah," Adraee wrote in a post that included a map of the potential targets.

The Israeli army said the building was being used to store precision missiles belonging to Hezbollah.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement that Hezbollah's precision missiles "posed a significant threat to the State of Israel."

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called on the United States and France, as guarantors of the ceasefire agreement struck in November, to compel Israel to stop its attacks.
"Israel's continued actions in undermining stability will exacerbate tensions and place the region at real risk, threatening its security and stability," he said in a statement.

Earlier this month an Israeli airstrike killed four people, including a Hezbollah official, in Beirut's southern suburbs -the second Israeli strike on a Hezbollah-controlled area of the Lebanese capital in five days.