Melike Pala
13 January 2026•Update: 13 January 2026
BRUSSELS
The European Commission on Tuesday called for full respect of Syria's sovereignty, unity, independence, and territorial integrity amid ongoing violence in the country.
Speaking during the midday press briefing in Brussels, EU Commission spokesperson Anouar El Anouni emphasized the bloc's concern over the waves of violence in Syria since March.
"There cannot be any peace or stability in Syria without a full process of national dialogue, reconciliation and traditional justice," he said.
El Anouni condemned any foreign military intervention aimed at undermining Syria's stability and stressed the importance of supporting prospects for a peaceful political transition.
"We're calling for full respect of the sovereignty, unity, independence and territorial integrity of Syria," El Anouni added.
He also highlighted the EU's attention to recent violent clashes in coastal areas last spring, noting that the European Commission has been closely monitoring developments on the ground.
Since last week, the YPG/SDF terror group has shelled residential neighborhoods, civilian facilities, and Syrian Army positions in Aleppo, killing 24 people, wounding nearly 130, and displacing about 165,000 residents from the Ashrafieh and Sheikh Maqsoud districts, according to official figures.
In March 2025, the Syrian presidency announced the signing of an agreement for the SDF’s integration into state institutions, reaffirming the country's territorial unity and rejecting any attempts at division.
In April 2025, Syrian authorities signed an agreement with the SDF concerning the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods, stipulating that both districts would be considered administrative parts of the city of Aleppo while respecting their local particularities.
The agreement also included provisions to ban armed manifestations, restrict weapons to internal security forces, and require the withdrawal of SDF military forces to areas east of the Euphrates River in northeastern Syria.
But authorities said that in the months since, the SDF has not shown any efforts to meet the terms of the agreements.
The Syrian government has intensified efforts to maintain security across the country since the ouster of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024, after 24 years in power.
