Overview
- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa met interim President Ahmad al‑Sharaa in Damascus during a brief regional tour between Amman and Beirut.
- The European Commission detailed a 2026–2027 support package of about €620 million alongside a framework built on political partnership, expanded economic cooperation and Syria’s participation in Pact for the Mediterranean initiatives.
- EU leaders voiced readiness to provide technical expertise, with the EU embassy establishing a technical assistance centre inside Syria’s Foreign Ministry to work with local counterparts.
- Fighting flared this week in Aleppo between government forces and Kurdish fighters, and Syria’s Defense Ministry announced a ceasefire that the SDF had not publicly confirmed.
- The outreach follows Bashar Assad’s ouster in 2024 and intersects with wider regional diplomacy, including a reported US‑mediated Israel–Syria channel to explore security arrangements.