Some EU Countries Say it is Time for More Communication with Damascus

World

BEIRUT- Some European countries which withdrew their ambassadors from Syria are saying privately it is time for more communication with Damascus even though Britain and France oppose it, diplomats said, according to Reuters.

Those states have become more vocal in internal meetings about the need to talk to the Syrian government and have a presence in the capital. London and Paris reject this.

Diplomats say the calls have come from or would be supported by countries including Sweden, Denmark, Romania, Bulgaria, Austria and Spain, as well as the Czech Republic, which did not withdraw its ambassador. Norway and Switzerland, which are outside the EU, are also supportive.

Although Europe has long faced divisions on Syria, the calls have increased since the so-called “Islamic State” advanced in Syria and Iraq last summer and U.S.-led strikes started against the terrorist organization.

The European diplomat said that some EU states say that President Bashar Al-Assad is a reality. “We have to take this into account if there are threats to Europe,” he added, referring to the risk of attacks at home by what by what he called “jihadists” returning from Syria.

The United Nations Syria envoy said on Tuesday the Syrian government was willing to suspend fight in Aleppo so a local ceasefire could be tested, a plan EU Foreign Ministers had backed in December.

“It is important the European Union support the U.N mediator and his effort to create a ceasefire,” Denmark’s Foreign Minister Martin Lidegaard told Reuters. “In relation to that, we cannot avoid to talk to the regime in Damascus.”

The EU has imposed sanctions on officials, businessmen, institutions and trade and bans the import of Syrian oil or petroleum products. It has 211 people under sanctions and 63 companies or other organizations.

In October it expanded sanctions to include 12 government ministers, two senior military figures and a United Arab Emirates company it accused of helping supply oil.

Reuters

H. M

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