Top EU officials demand lifting of sanctions on Syria 'immediately'
The group called for lifting sanctions on food and medical supplies immediately and urgently.
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Supplies sent from Tunisia reach Aleppo airport in Syria as part of the disaster relief aid on February 8, 2023. (AFP)
Activists from France and the European Union called for the urgent and immediate lifting of the economic sanctions imposed on Syria.
"For twelve years, Syria has been in the grip of an endless war," the group said in a petition.
"The unilateral sanctions, which strongly affect the civilian population, are now making the situation untenable for thousands of Syrians who are in makeshift shelters," it continued.
The statement added that amid an announced storm in the region, a simple humanitarian concern requires that the "sanctions on basic food and medical products be lifted immediately and urgently."
The group also demanded that "all NGOs and associations authorized or likely to work with the Red Cross and the ICRC be eligible to receive the funds mobilized by France and the European Union."
Read more: Western selective humanitarianism, Syria earthquake falls on deaf ears
Among the most prominent signatories to the letter are the former President of Doctors Without Borders Dr. Rony Brauman, the former French Minister of Foreign Affairs Hervé de CHARETTE, the president of the Franco-Syrian Medical Friendship Association Dr. Maher Daoud, the former Minister of Interior and Defense Pierre Joxe, and Senator Pierre Cuypers.
In this context, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, announced that the European Union intends to host a donors' conference in early March in Brussels to collect international aid for Syria and Turkey after the devastating earthquake that struck them on Monday.
The European official wrote in a tweet: "We are now racing against the clock to save lives together. Soon we will provide relief aid, together. Türkiye and Syria can count on the EU."
Read more: Exclusive: US sanctions preventing Syria from receiving aid - FM
We are now racing against the clock to save lives together.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) February 8, 2023
Soon we will provide relief aid, together.
Türkiye and Syria can count on the EU.
@SwedishPM and I will host a Donors' Conference early March in Brussels.
Let’s mobilise funds globally for the affected communities.
While Europe has been convening frequently to adopt sanctions against Russia and announce funds worth billions of dollars to Ukraine, it seems that the EU is in no hurry to hold an aid conference for earthquake victims until next March, almost a month after the earthquake occurred.
Following the earthquakes, several Western countries mobilized rapidly to send aid and rescue workers to Turkey but decided to exclude Syria and neglect it, by only offering condolences and merely expressing readiness to support the affected Syrians, with nothing done on the ground, in a clear act of hypocrisy and double standards.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell and EU crisis management commissioner Janez Lenarcic said the European Union has mobilized 10 search and rescue teams for Turkey after Ankara requested EU assistance, claiming that the bloc was ready to support those affected in Syria too, if asked, knowing that Syria did call on the international community for help.
EU humanitarian aid Spokesperson Balazs Ujvari claimed the bloc is ready to assist Syria's quake relief efforts if needed, however, so far, no initiative has been taken while the toll of the victims of the catastrophic earthquake in Syria is rising by the hour.
US President Joe Biden on Monday said he was "deeply saddened" and promised his country's assistance after a major 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Turkey and Syria.
However, Biden hinted that the aid will be directed to what he called US-supported "humanitarian groups" responding to the destruction in Syria, possibly in reference to NGOs operating in areas outside the control of the Syrian state, which perhaps excludes the rest of the country from any such aid, knowing that some of these organization are infamous for staging false attacks to implicate the Syrian government in crimes it has not committed.
Read more: US sanctions on Syria hinder aid supply, leave thousands under rubble
Countries besieged and sanctioned by the West were the first to come to Syria's aid in defiance of US sanctions.
Iran, Russia, and Venezuela, for example, sent humanitarian aid planes to Damascus, while Iraq established an air bridge to Syria to send urgent relief aid. Even Lebanon, which is under a suffocating economic crisis, sent a team to participate in search and rescue operations, while Tunisia, Algeria, Jordan, and the UAE did not hesitate to help Syria as well.
It is noteworthy that official data show that the earthquake has claimed so far the lives of more than 17 thousand citizens in both Turkey and Syria.
