EU Foreign Ministers Agree on Further Sanctions Against Syria

On Monday, the foreign ministers of EU member states threatened that Syria would face additional sanctions due to its chemical attack. The meeting also discussed further sanctions against Russia and Iran, but no agreement was reached. Following the joint military strike by the US, France, and the UK against suspected chemical facilities in Syria, the EU decided to take the isolation of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad more seriously. The foreign ministers of the 28 EU countries announced at the end of their meeting in Luxembourg: "As long as the repression continues in Syria, the EU will continue its restrictive measures against this country." During the meeting, UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian reported to other EU foreign ministers about military operations in Syria. In response to chemical attacks in Eastern Ghouta, the US, along with its two allies in the UN Security Council, France and the UK, launched over a hundred missiles at targets in Syria. According to the Pentagon, part of Syria's chemical weapons facilities were targeted in these attacks. After the meeting, Boris Johnson told reporters: "It is very important to emphasize that the attacks we carried out were in no way an attempt to change the balance in the (Syrian internal) war or to change the regime." The UK Foreign Secretary stated: "I regret to say that the horrific civil war in Syria is continuing on its path. What we did was provide a decisive response that we will not tolerate the use of chemical weapons." The EU foreign ministers stated that they would further tighten restrictions in line with previous sanctions against individuals and entities in Syria that have been in place since 2011. It has been reported that on Monday, in another meeting, the EU foreign ministers discussed imposing further sanctions against Iran, which did not reach an agreement. The UK, France, and Germany requested that Iran be subjected to punitive measures due to its support for the central Syrian government. Additionally, further sanctions against Russia for its support of the ruling government in Syria were not agreed upon. According to a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reporter from Luxembourg, the most resistance to imposing further sanctions on Iran was expressed by Italy during the meeting. An informed source told the Radio Free Europe reporter: "Given that Italy has not yet formed a new government, Rome is not in a position to make such a tough decision, and Berlin, London, and Paris do not know which group in Italy they should negotiate with." The EU foreign ministers, in their final statement, called on Iran, Russia, and Turkey to cooperate to achieve a ceasefire and aid the 13.1 million needy people in Syria.