LONDON
The EU has agreed to a roadmap to ease the EU sanctions on Syria, the bloc's foreign policy chief announced on Monday.
"EU Foreign Ministers just agreed on a roadmap to ease the EU sanctions on Syria," Kaja Kallas wrote on X. "While we aim to move fast, the lifting of sanctions can be reversed if wrong steps are taken."
Later at a news conference following Foreign Affairs Council meeting, Kallas cautioned that there is still concern over what might happen.
"Right now we have a political decision. We have the road map. We have a step for step approach," she said.
Western nations imposed severe economic sanctions on Syria after Assad's brutal crackdown on protesters in 2011, which later escalated into a devastating civil war.
The sanctions included trade and commerce, an import ban on crude oil and petroleum products from Syria, the freezing of Syrian government assets abroad, and export restrictions on certain equipment, goods, and technology.
Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime groups took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, ending the Baath Party’s regime, which had been in power since 1963.
Redeploying border mission to Rafah
Kallas also announced that EU foreign ministers have also agreed to redeploy European Union Border Assistance Mission for the Rafah Crossing Point (EUBAM Rafah) between Gaza and Egypt.
"This will allow a number of injured individuals to leave Gaza and receive medical care," she said, adding EUBAM Rafah could play a role in supporting the ceasefire in Gaza.
Kallas also said that they had the invitation letters from both Palestine as well as Israel in this regard.
Asked about US President Donald Trump's call to "clean out" Gaza, and proposal to resettle Gazans in Jordan and Egypt, the foreign policy chief stressed that Palestinian people "have suffered a lot."
"We have the ceasefire in place, but it requires also the next steps to be taken so that the peace would be permanent, that there's stability and peace in the region, and that, from our point of view requires the two-state solution."
She went on to say that that two-states solution requires that the two states are more equal basis, and that is why European Union is supporting Palestinian Authority.
Trump's proposal came a week after a ceasefire agreement took effect in Gaza on Jan. 19, suspending Israel’s genocidal war that has killed more than 47,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured more than 111,000 since Oct. 7, 2023.
Baltic Sea incidents
Kallas also said rnhancing Europe's own security was among top agenda items during Foreign Affairs Council meeting, adding that Russia's hybrid actions are increasing in frequency and intensity.
"The Baltic Sea has seen major cases of damage of undersea installations. Our failure to deter such actions sends dangerous signal to any aggressor, weakness invites them in, that is very clear," she said. "Failure to act now risks further aggression, not just from Russia, but also from others."
An underwater fiber optic cable linking Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland has been damaged due to an "external influence," local media reported Sunday.
The Baltic Sea has been the location of several high-profile infrastructure incidents since the onset of Russia's war on Ukraine in February 2022, which heightened tensions in the region.
European officials have suggested that sabotage could be behind the recent disruptions, potentially linked to Russia’s ongoing war on Ukraine. But the Kremlin has rejected the claims, calling them “absurd.”
'We are not negotiating on Greenland'
Asked about Trump's recent comments on Greenland, Kallas said that the EU supports its member Denmark.
"We are not negotiating on Greenland. Of course, we are supporting our member state, Denmark, and its autonomous region, Greenland," she noted.
However, Kallas added: "But we shouldn't also go into speculation about what ifs because this is not the situation right now."
When Trump first expressed his desire to buy Greenland in 2019, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called it "ridiculous" and stressed that Greenland was not for sale. After the statement, Trump canceled his planned visit to Denmark.
But Trump reiterated his desire to acquire Greenland following his re-election.
Greenland, the world’s largest island, has been an autonomous territory of Denmark since 1979. Located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, it is home to a US military base and holds strategic importance, as it offers the shortest route from North America to Europe.
