Help for Syria
Schulze on an exploratory trip to Damascus – see what happens
In Syria, Svenja Schulze stands between mountains of rubble. But in the Foreign Ministry, where the guest from Germany is received, the floors are polished. There is cautious optimism.
Federal Development Minister Svenja Schulze traveled to Syria for the first time to promote aid projects in the war-torn country. The federal government is openly approaching the interim government in Damascus set up by Islamist rebels, but without naivety. “After more than 50 years of dictatorship and 14 years of civil war, Syria now has the chance for peaceful and stable development,” said the SPD politician before a meeting with the foreign minister of the interim government, Asaad al-Shaibani. Whether this will succeed is currently still an open question.
As Schulze’s convoy drives from the airport to the Foreign Ministry, the vehicles pass a notorious secret service prison where the security apparatus of President Bashar al-Assad, who fled in December, once interrogated and tortured dissidents. Then we pass a burned-out police building.
Piles of rubble and houses like skeletons
The minister stands shocked in the afternoon in the Jubar district, or rather in the place where Jubar used to be. A dusty ghost town with buildings that look like skeletons. In the former rebel stronghold, which was once home to around half a million people, no house is now habitable. First the barrel bombs fell, then the state authorities brought the last residents out of the city on buses. “Doors, beds, window frames, steel beams, everything was dragged away and sold,” says an older man who came here a few days ago for the first time in years. Because as long as Assad was in power, no one was allowed to enter the district.
Looking at the debate in Germany about the return of Syrian refugees, Schulze says: “If your home looks like this, then that’s a very hard decision to make.”
Big tasks – returning is not a priority
De facto Foreign Minister Al-Shaibani sees no need for a quick, possibly hasty return of his compatriots from Germany to their old homeland. “You are safe there,” he told the German Press Agency on the sidelines of his meeting with Schulze. The refugees who have been accepted into Germany are doing better than many Syrian refugees and displaced persons in other regions. It is unclear which of the ministers of the current transitional government will still be in office in the summer. It is said that the Foreign Minister’s chances are at least not bad. The same applies to the de facto health minister Maher al-Sharaa, a brother of the new ruler Ahmed al-Sharaa.
Schulze is the second German cabinet member to travel to Damascus after the fall of long-term ruler Assad. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) flew to the Syrian capital on January 3rd. In her discussions with representatives of the interim government, she emphasized that the rights of all religious and ethnic minorities must be protected. It is not yet known when the German embassy, which has been closed since 2012, can be expected to reopen. This is ultimately a security question and also a political decision. The next federal government would be “wisely advised” to seek contacts with Syria, “because it is a strategically important country,” says Schulze.
No payments to interim government
“It would be wrong not to do everything in this historic window of time to support Syria with a peaceful new beginning,” says Schulze. At the same time, she emphasizes that all projects selected by Germany will not be implemented with the de facto rulers, but exclusively through United Nations aid agencies and non-governmental organizations.
On December 8th, long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad was overthrown by a rebel alliance led by the Islamist group Haiat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which now leads the Arab country with a transitional government appointed by it.
Baerbock and other European government officials have set conditions for the lifting of sanctions and for support. The sanctions are the reason why roaming in Syria and bank transfers do not work. There is a need for a political dialogue involving all ethnic and religious groups, including all people, said the Foreign Minister.
What will become of Syrian refugees in Germany?
Some politicians, including Bundestag member Jens Spahn (CDU) and BSW chairwoman Sahra Wagenknecht, had already called for the Syrian refugees to return quickly to their homeland shortly after the end of Assad’s rule. Baerbock, on the other hand, suggested allowing refugees from Syria living in Germany to visit their home country with an exemption. In this way, they could find out for themselves whether there was a permanent opportunity for them to return. Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) is now examining a corresponding exception regulation.
When those entitled to protection travel to their countries of origin, it is assumed that the requirements for protection no longer exist. There are only exceptions if the trip is “morally imperative”, for example because of the death of a relative, and has been reported to the authorities.
The fact that in Germany after Baerbock’s visit to Damascus there was a lot of discussion about the fact that de facto ruler Ahmed al-Sharaa did not greet the Green politician with a handshake, some Syrian exiled opposition members were left shaking their heads. At a conference in Riyadh, Foreign Minister al-Shaibani shook hands with Baerbock – as she did with her cabinet colleague Schulze in Damascus.
dpa
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
