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U.S. adds nearly $1 billion to Syrian aid as conference weighs long-term needs U.S. adds nearly $1 billion to Syrian aid as conference weighs long-term needs
(about 9 hours later)
LONDON — Secretary of State John F. Kerry on Thursday said the United States would send more than $900 million in humanitarian and development aid to Syria and its neighbors burdened with a refu­gee crush that could take years to ease. Saudi Arabia said Thursday that it is ready to send ground troops into Syria to fight against the Islamic State as part of the U.S.-led coalition.
“The kingdom is ready to participate in any ground operations that the coalition may agree to carry out in Syria,” Saudi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Ahmed al-Asiri said in a news conference in Riyadh.
It was unclear how many troops, or under what circumstances, the Saudis would commit to a ground force. The United Arab Emirates, also a member of the anti-Islamic State coalition, made a similar offer late last year. While some U.S. critics of the Obama administration’s policy in Syria have called for organizing a Sunni Arab force in the region, U.S. officials have said there are no current plans to set up such a force.
The Saudi announcement came as pressure increased on international stakeholders in Syria’s separate, civil conflict to push for a ceasefire that would allow Syrians on the ground to shift their attention away from fighting each other, to focus on the Islamic State.
Following this week’s suspension of United Nations-led talks in Geneva between the government of President Bashar al-Assad and opposition fighters, the Obama administration has grown increasingly critical of Russian airstrikes on behalf of Assad’s forces. U.S. officials have charged that opposition forces, which Russia says include “terrorists,” have borne the brunt of those attacks.
The stakeholder group is due to meet in Munich on Feb. 11.
Failure to substantively begin the peace negotiations came as international humanitarian groups called on world powers to “start putting Syrians first, and your own interests second,” as Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, put it at a conference in London to address the humanitarian catastrophy in Syria.
“While the front lines have hardly moved over the last years, the civilian population’s suffering has surged,” Maurer said, including millions of Syrians displaced in their own country or sent fleeing abroad as refugees, and many lacking food and medicine in towns and cities besieged by the fighting.
Addressing the conference earlier in the day, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said the United States would send more than $900 million in additional humanitarian and development aid to Syria and its neighbors burdened with a refu­gee crush that could take years to ease.
In a sum that is likely to swell as the year goes on, Kerry said $600 million will go to the United Nations and other agencies for emergency food, shelter and health in Syria and neighboring countries, where millions of refugees have fled. Much of the rest will go to provide schooling for refugee children in Jordan and Lebanon.In a sum that is likely to swell as the year goes on, Kerry said $600 million will go to the United Nations and other agencies for emergency food, shelter and health in Syria and neighboring countries, where millions of refugees have fled. Much of the rest will go to provide schooling for refugee children in Jordan and Lebanon.
About a quarter of all U.S. humanitarian aid last year was tied to the Syrian war, which grew out of anti-government protests in 2011. According to State Department calculations, the latest donation brings U.S. total funding to $5.1 billion, the largest of any country by far.About a quarter of all U.S. humanitarian aid last year was tied to the Syrian war, which grew out of anti-government protests in 2011. According to State Department calculations, the latest donation brings U.S. total funding to $5.1 billion, the largest of any country by far.
[Kerry’s appeal: Let aid through to Syrians][Kerry’s appeal: Let aid through to Syrians]
The conference on Syrian aid efforts — the first since refugees began spreading across Europe last year — is overshadowed by the sudden suspension of Geneva peace talks that seemed to offer the best hope of bringing an end to the fighting in Syria. The conference on Syrian aid efforts — the first since refugees began spreading across Europe last year — was overshadowed by the sudden suspension of the Geneva peace talks, which seemed to offer the best hope of bringing an end to the Syrian civil war.
A “pause” in the talks was called until at least Feb. 25 after the opposition and government delegations failed to agree on conditions required to get them started. In a speech to diplomats from 79 countries attending the conference, Kerry characterized the stumble in the talks as a “temporary recess.” U.N. officials have said they hope to reconvene on Feb. 25.
In a speech to diplomats from 79 countries attending the conference, Kerry characterized the stumble in the talks as a “temporary recess.” He predicted talks would resume later this month. In remarks to reporters, Kerry said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had “agreed we need to discuss” how to implement a cease-fire and get the Syrian government and the opposition to allow humanitarian access, “We will, I am confident, find a way to move forward,” said Kerry, standing alongside British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond.
As a precondition for negotiations, the opposition has insisted on a halt to the bombing of civilian areas by Russian warplanes and the Syrian government it backs. it also demanded that sieges be lifted to allow humanitarian access.
Kerry adopted an identical stance Thursday.
In remarks to reporters, Kerry said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had “agreed we need to discuss” how to implement a cease-fire and get the Syrian government and the opposition to allow humanitarian access to besieged areas.
“We will, I am confident, find a way to move forward,” said Kerry, standing alongside British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond.
[Syrian peace talks hit roadblock even before they really begin][Syrian peace talks hit roadblock even before they really begin]
Hammond said the diplomats at the donor conference are all “very keen to keep the momentum going” in the talks, and suggested there is no better option on the table.Hammond said the diplomats at the donor conference are all “very keen to keep the momentum going” in the talks, and suggested there is no better option on the table.
“We recognize it’s difficult for the regime to be at the table talking to the opposition,” he said. “It’s difficult for the opposition to talk to the regime when their people at home are being killed through bombing and other forms of attack.“We recognize it’s difficult for the regime to be at the table talking to the opposition,” he said. “It’s difficult for the opposition to talk to the regime when their people at home are being killed through bombing and other forms of attack.
“But we have to continue this process. It’s the only way to get a solution to the disaster that is engulfing Syria.”“But we have to continue this process. It’s the only way to get a solution to the disaster that is engulfing Syria.”
The delay in peace talks underscored how the lengthy Syrian war shows no signs of easing.
Three previous pledging conferences, all held in Kuwait, have raised about half of what was sought for Syria and its burdened neighbors. This fourth conference has drawn several European countries as hosts, and delegates appear to be more resigned to the long road ahead.Three previous pledging conferences, all held in Kuwait, have raised about half of what was sought for Syria and its burdened neighbors. This fourth conference has drawn several European countries as hosts, and delegates appear to be more resigned to the long road ahead.
“There is also the realization the Syria crisis is a protracted emergency, and requires more than humanitarian assistance to the victims of the conflict,” said a senior administration official, speaking anonymously under State Department ground rules. King Abdullah II of Jordan, which has more than a million Syrian refugees, said his country is at a “boiling point,” as a quarter of Jordan’s budget goes to refugees who need education, health care and social services.
[Cut off by conflict: Syrian face starvation] “Sooner or later, I think the dam is going to burst,” he said.
Much of the discussion has revolved around getting humanitarian aid to refugees and the displaced, who together number 17 million. Also discussed were efforts to expand jobs and schools. DeYoung reported from Washington. And Karla Adam in London contributed to this report.
Officials say they are needed not only for refugees but for citizens of the neighboring host countries that are bending under the stress of hosting so many desperate people. Read more
King Abdullah II of Jordan said his country is at a “boiling point,” as a quarter of Jordan’s budget goes to refugees who need education, health care and social services. Kerry warns of Islamic State expansion in Libya
“Sooner or later, I think the dam is going to burst,” said the king. U.S. official recalls the devastation he saw on secret trip to Syria
David Miliband, a former British foreign secretary who now heads the International Rescue Committee, has called for 1 million work permits for Syrian refugees in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon, saying it was time to “end the fiction” that the crisis was a short-term problem. China backs U.N. move to denounce North Korea over nuclear test
“And that's only possible if those countries are offered massive, long-term financing for adjusting their economic and social infrastructure to meet the new reality,” he said. “There has to be an economic offer both to the countries and to the refugees” Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world
Simon O’Connell, the executive director of Mercy Corps Europe, said even if the fighting ended tomorrow it will take a decade or longer to rebuild Syria enough so millions of refugees can go home.
“There’s been a huge breakdown in the social fabric inside Syria,” he said at the conference. “It will take time for people to go home, rebuild their lives and livelihoods.”
Karla Adam in London and Karen DeYoung in Washington contributed to this report.