Lifting sanctions tops agenda as Syria Foreign Minister lands in Paris for high-level talks
Asaad Hassan al-Shibani. (X Photo)
Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan Al-Shibani will attend an international conference in Paris on Thursday, marking the country’s first high-level visit to the European Union since the overthrow of Bashar Assad.
The visit follows an invitation from President Emmanuel Macron to Syria’s UN-sanctioned President Ahmed Al-Sharaa.
A French official described the gathering as an effort to “create a protective bubble around the Syria crisis”, allowing time for stabilization and deterring external actors from destabilizing the country.
The conference will host regional ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, and Lebanon, along with Western partners, though the United States will maintain only a low-level diplomatic presence.
According to the French Foreign Ministry, the meeting will focus on ensuring Syria’s sovereignty and security, mobilizing regional partners for aid coordination, and discussing transitional justice and the fight against impunity.
Lifting sanctions will also be a topic, although the EU remains divided, with Cyprus and Greece opposing any easing of restrictions due to unresolved maritime delimitation talks between Syria and Turkiye. Diplomats, however, remain hopeful for a compromise this month.
Ahead of the conference, donors will assess Syria’s humanitarian crisis, particularly in northeastern Syria, where US aid cuts have had a “terrifying” impact, according to a European official.
The issue of Western-backed Kurdish forces, their relationship with the central government, and Turkiye’s stance on these groups—which it classifies as terrorist organizations—will also be a key discussion point.
