10
Feb
2026
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Situación en el noreste de Siria, violencia contra la población civil y necesidad de mantener un alto el fuego sostenible (debate)
Mr President, I was listening carefully. First, many of you asked about financing. So I will start with financing controls. All of you know that financing is accompanied by strong controls and conditions. So we are screening all partners, contractors, subcontractors against EU and UN sanctions lists. For example, for school rehabilitation projects we use satellite images and we are monitoring to verify that facilities are built and used for education and not repurposed for military or political use. So the Commission applies strict safeguards to the implementation of the European Union funds. We have monitoring programmes, including regular reports from implementing partners in local verification missions, but also results‑oriented monitoring exercises. So European Union funds will not be channelled via the transitional government, but the transitional authorities are closely involved and consulted, and they are one of the key beneficiaries through capacity‑building. So for the time being the Commission will work with implementing partners on the ground. As you know, the first implementing partners are the United Nations and Member State agencies who are present on the ground, but also civil society organisations. So every euro is controlled and can be withdrawn immediately. This is about financing. On some other issues I will try to reply, but it is not possible to reply to all of you. The European Union is closely monitoring the situation in Aleppo and north‑east Syria, including through our delegation in Damascus, and we remain vigilant about respect for human rights and international humanitarian law. We will continue supporting a peaceful and truly inclusive transition – when I say inclusive, I mean inclusive – and also national reconciliation, which is very important. Also to reply to some of you, to Mr Sánchez Amor, we are advocating for a genuinely inclusive political transition. But for this to happen we need integration of military, security and civilian institutions into unified state structures alongside meaningful political and local participation, which is essential. So the full protection of Kurdish rights is also crucial. We are not interfering, we are accompanying – because he said that we are interfering. We are accompanying Syrians on their journey to transition. We are supporting the minorities very directly and also through channelling the reforms. Ms Al-Sahlani, I fully agree on the need for a functional and real ceasefire, and I share her view and the views of many of you who spoke about the need for protection of Kurdish women. The Kurdish community, all of us know, is an integral part of Syria's social fabric and has an important role in building the new Syria. On some other points, because many of you have left – on children freezing, we heard a lot. Our DG ECHO is providing emergency support, including heating and infant supplies when access allows. So the money goes also there, just to understand. So civilian protection is so important and it is interesting in the building of civil society. Mr Stier, who also left, was talking about Alawites, Druze, Christians and Jews. They need, of course, to be protected, but I want to thank him for his valuable ideas on a federal approach and the inclusive society. Returning sanctions will not help any of these ethnic and religious communities. This will move us back. So we do not think that this is a good idea. The situation is not frozen. The situation is very fragile, with many actors on the scene, with the trust among them. We are doing what we can in this context in order to advance peace and stability. To conclude, I think this debate has shown the big concern all of us share: care. But it has also shown the enormous care and trust for the people of Syria. We should continue to work together to help the people of Syria, whatever our differences can be. I think they need our joint and concrete efforts. So I want to thank you for this debate. Just to say that the way Damascus handles SDF integration is a litmus test for the inclusivity of the Syrian transition process, and it will significantly impact the dynamics between the transitional authorities and the different Syrian communities. We, as the European Union, will continue to have a structured engagement with the Syrian transitional authorities and civil society. With the Member States we are eager to reinforce our engagement under a Team Europe approach – it is not always easy because Member States have different bilateral positions. We will also, as I said, remain engaged bilaterally, regionally and through the Global Coalition to prevent the resurgence of Daesh and other extremist groups in Syria. Preventing Daesh – many of you mentioned this – remains a collective security priority, and it is key for the security of Syria and for the security of the region, but also for the security of Europe.