Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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As we enter a new year, the situation in Syria continues to be one of utmost concern. The conflict, which is now almost eight years old, has cost an estimated half a million lives. Over 13 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance inside Syria, including close to 3 million people trapped in besieged and hard-to-reach areas. Over 5.5 million have fled to neighboring countries and the wider region. An end to the violence is urgently needed in order to relieve the suffering of the Syrian people.The UN is leading political negotiations to end the conflict based on the 2012 Geneva Communique and UN Security Council resolution 2254, which calls for an end to violence; release of political prisoners; formation of a transitional governing body with executive powers and a constitutional reform process. The eighth round of these talks is currently underway in Geneva. Ireland fully supports this process and the work of UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura. The EU provides direct assistance to the UN-led Geneva peace talks and has launched, in coordination with the UN, an initiative to develop political dialogue with key actors from the region to identify common ground. The EU Syria Peace Process Support Initiative aims to facilitate the peace process, build the capacity of opposition parties and contribute to dialogue with civil society in support of the efforts of the UN Special Envoy for Syria.

Ireland and the EU also provide support, including financial support, to a broad range of mechanisms to ensure legal accountability for all war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Syria as part of a sustainable peaceful resolution to the conflict.

Since 2012 Ireland has contributed over €90 million to the international humanitarian response to the Syria crisis, including €25 million in 2017. This is our largest contribution to a single crisis in recent years. Through our annual contributions to the EU institutions Ireland also supports the EU’s humanitarian response to the crisis. The EU and its Member States have together mobilised more than €9.5 billion for humanitarian and resilience assistance to support Syrians inside the country and in neighbouring countries, making the EU the largest single donor to the effort. The EU will host a donors’ conference for Syria in 2018.