Newsroom

Side Event “Ensuring Justice for Syria”: statement by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders (New York, 27 September 2018).

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders is pleased with the decision taken on 27 July in The Hague by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to assume the role of investigating the responsibilities for chemical attacks in Syria. 

Belgium will allocate this year 26 million EUR for humanitarian help to Syria and neighboring countries. This sum will go to the war refugees. The announcement was made by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Development Cooperation Alexander De Croo at the start of the international conference Supporting Syria and the Region which takes place today and tomorrow in Brussels.

Belgium strongly condemns all use of chemical weapons which are a blatant violation of international law. Belgium therefore understands the military action in Syria of our American, French and British partners who have targeted identified production facilities. 

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders is worried about the escalation of violence in Syria and about the humanitarian situation in the country. The situation has become particularly severe in recent weeks in Eastern Ghouta, in Idlib province and around Afrin, among others.

In the margins of the opening of the 72nd session of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders participated Thursday and Friday in several meetings on the situation in Syria and Iraq and on the fight against impunity in the region.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Didier Reynders is shocked by the chemical attack in the Syrian Idlib province, where dozens of civilians, including many children, were killed. His thoughts go out to the victims and their families. He calls for an international investigation into this attack and supports the action that was already taken by the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).

Deputy Prime Minister and minister for Development Cooperation Alexander De Croo has pleaded on behalf of Belgium to end impunity at the conference ‘Supporting Syria and the Region’ in Brussels. This appeal comes a day after news of gas attacks in the Syrian province Idlib. Belgium remains committed to providing humanitarian support to Syria and its neighbouring countries. Since last year, Belgium has committed 143 million euro humanitarian assistance, almost doubling its pledge.

The UN Security Council labelled Daesh as a threat against international peace and security (resolution 2249/2015). The military actions against Daesh follow a request of the Iraqi government for assistance in the exercise by Iraq of its right to self-defense against this terrorist organization. To fight Daesh efficiently, operations also above Syrian territory are necessary. This legal analysis is shared by all participants in the International Coalition against Daesh. For this reason, the extension of the Belgian operation to the part of the Syrian territory that is controlled by Daesh was approved by the Belgian Parliament. Moreover Belgium uses the strictest possible safety precautions to avoid civilian casualties during its operations.

The federal government allocates 100,000 euros to Music For Life, the annual solidarity action of the Studio Brussel radio station. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Development Cooperation Alexander De Croo announced this in Boom. This contribution is in line with the humanitarian efforts of our country in and around Syria and goes to the NGOs Doctors of the World and Red Cross Flanders.