Brussels Conference Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region kicks off today

The Brussels Conference Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region (#SyriaConf2017), hosted by the European Union and co-chaired with Germany, Kuwait, Norway, Qatar, the United Kingdom and the United Nations, is taking place today and tomorrow (4–5 April). Ahead of the main Conference event tomorrow, High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini will hold today a series of bilateral meetings and will also meet with the UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura. They will hold a joint press point at 16:00 CET, live on EbS. Thematic sessions are also taking place today, focusing on various aspects of international support provided in response to the crisis in Syria and the region. Commissioner Stylianides opened (speech here) the thematic session "Humanitarian aid Inside Syria – Needs challenges and the way forward" this morning. Later in the afternoon, Commissioner Hahn will address the "Supporting the resilience of host countries and refugees" session. The interventions by the Commissioners are available live on EbS. All thematic sessions will feed into the main discussions tomorrow. Tomorrow, the main Conference event will bring together ministerial representatives from over 70 delegations, from the EU and the region, but also the wider international community, the United Nations, major donors and civil society, and humanitarian and development organisations. The Conference will begin with the arrival of the delegations at 7:30 CET; a ministerial meeting and the session on “Supporting the future of Syria“, which HR/VP Mogherini will chair, will take place in the morning. It will be followed by a live press conference by all co-chairs at +/- 13:00 CET. Commissioner Hahn and Commissioner Stylianides will then co-chair the afternoon sessions on “Supporting the region and the refugees-implementation of London commitments and the way ahead” and “Syria - humanitarian assistance and resilience” respectively. All media opportunities will be transmitted here. For more information on the Conference, including the indicative programme, media advisories, and background information, visit the website. For more information on EU response to the Syria crisis, see here. For more information on the outcome of today's sessions, see here and here.