BRUSSELS: International donors led by the United Nations pledged five billion euros ($5.4 billion) for Syrian refugees on Monday, saying Brussels “must not back down” on the war-torn country.
The annual meeting, organized by the European Union and chaired by foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, saw the EU24 pay 2.12 billion euros for 2024 and 2025.
This figure is on top of the 560 million euros already promised this year for internally displaced Syrians and in Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, and the same amount for 2025.
The EU also pledged one billion euros for Syrian refugees in neighboring Turkey.
It is really bad and humanitarian needs have never been higher,” said Borrell.
Janez Lenarčić, the European Union’s humanitarian chief, said that on top of the five billion euro grant, another 2.5 billion will be borrowed by donors.
He said that the European Union and its member states kept three quarters of their promises.
The United States has pledged 545 million euros ($593 million) in humanitarian aid to Syria. “Washington is committed to providing assistance to the Syrian people and calls on other donors to continue their support for the Syrian people,” the State Department said in a statement.
Oxfam’s Syrian director, Moutaz Adham said: “Although we stand by the promises we made today, the discussion is far from the reality facing Syria.”
Funding still does not match the scale of needs, and the number of people dependent on aid is growing every year. “
Countries in the region, which have hosted millions of refugees from Syria due to its failure, are increasingly trying to return them to the country.
But Borrell warned against efforts to send people back to Syria.
“We warn against the voluntary return of Syrian refugees to Syria.”
“Voluntary return means voluntary. Refugees should not be sent back to Syria.”
“We believe that now there are no more safe, voluntary, informed and dignified refugees in Syria,” said a senior refugee diplomat.
The war in Syria has killed more than half a million people and left millions homeless since Damascus cracked down on anti-government protests in 2011.
More than a quarter of Syrians live in extreme poverty 13 years into the devastating civil war that has crippled the economy and left millions destitute, according to the World Bank.
Borrell said efforts to find a political solution to the conflict were “difficult”.
“The Assad regime has shown no intention of engaging in a meaningful political process.”
“We ask everyone, and partners in the region, to use their political power to strengthen the political process.”
