About: Bashar al-Assad Archives

Turkey's army and its allies thrust deeper into Syria yesterday (28 August), seizing territory controlled by Kurdish-aligned forces on the fifth day of a cross-border campaign that a monitoring group said had killed at least 35 villagers.

A suicide bomber aged between 12 and 14 carried out the attack on a wedding party in the Turkish city of Gaziantep on Saturday (20 August) that killed at least 51 people, the president said.

The European Union on Thursday (18 August) urged an "immediate halt" to fighting in the Syrian city of Aleppo to allow medical and humanitarian aid to reach an estimated 1.5 million trapped civilians.

Russia and the United States are close to starting joint military action against militants in Syria's Aleppo, Russian news agencies on Monday (15 August) quoted Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu as saying.

Tomasz Poręba discusses the ever-growing threat coming from Russia and the importance of the upcoming Warsaw NATO Summit in order to strengthen Europe’s eastern border.

Syrian government forces and their allies fought insurgents near Aleppo yesterday (9 May) and jets conducted raids around a nearby town seized by Islamist rebels, a monitoring group said, as Syria's military said a ceasefire in Aleppo would be extended by 48 hours starting today.

Russia’s latest military moves in Syria have sharpened divisions within the US administration over whether Russian President Vladimir Putin genuinely backs a UN-led initiative to end the civil war or is using the negotiations to mask renewed military support for Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Syrian peace talks came close to collapse yesterday (18 April), with the mainstream opposition announcing a pause in talks at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva, although it agreed to keep its negotiating team in the city.

The EU's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini met with Syria's regime and opposition yesterday (23 March) to underscore the urgency of a political solution in the country, especially in the wake of the Brussels attacks.

Following Russia's announced partial withdrawal of troops from Syria, Margarete Klein from the German institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) analysed the reasons behind Moscow's decision and what it means for future peace talk prospects. EURACTIV Germany reports.

Thanks to military and police control inherited from the French colonialism, Bashar al-Assad's rule went almost completely unchallenged, writes Stratfor, the global intelligence company.

Major powers agreed today (12 February) to a cessation of hostilities in Syria set to begin in a week, and to provide rapid humanitarian access to besieged Syrian towns.

Manfred Weber, the leader of the EPP group in Parliament, has welcomed Turkey's commitment to reduce the number of refugees crossing into Europe. EU member states must now do their part and start taking in their quotas of refugees, he said. EURACTIV’s partner Tagesspiegel reports.

Brexit, the refugee crisis, the death of Schengen: Hubert Védrine offered his take on Europe's ills to EURACTIV Romania.

Putin’s campaign in Syria is deepening the refugee crisis and making Angela Merkel’s position increasingly insecure. A weakened Merkel means a weakened European Union, writes Judy Dempsey.

Calls for returning to “normal dialogue” and re-establishing “pragmatic” relations with Russia only show that some in the EU have not learned the lessons of the recent past, writes Linas Linkevi?ius.

EXCLUSIVE / Ankara "cannot and must not" cooperate with the regime of Bashar al-Assad as the lack of authority in Syria generated the ISIS problem, according to Osman Sert who spoke to EURACTIV in a telephone interview. 

Turkey's careful balance with Russia and differences with the West over working with Islamist forces have long been a source of frustration for other members of NATO, writes Stratfor.

During a visit to the US yesterday (24 November), French President François Hollande abandoned plans to include Russia in an international coalition against Islamic State, following the Paris attacks, in which 130 people lost their lives.

Faced with the failure of European security cooperation, the leader of the Liberals in the European Parliament has called for the creation of an EU intelligence agency. EURACTIV France reports. 

French warplanes pounded Islamic State positions in Syria on Sunday (15 November) as police in Europe widened their investigations into coordinated attacks in Paris that killed more than 130 people.

Russia, the United States and powers from Europe and the Middle East outlined a plan on Saturday (14 November) for a political process in Syria leading to elections within two years.

The Kremlin believes it has taught Washington an object lesson in how to take on Islamist militants in Syria. Basking in the afterglow of Bashar al-Assad's surprise visit to Moscow this week, it now believes it could lead the way diplomatically too.

Russia is guaranteeing its strengthening in Syria while the West dithers. It is time for Europe to be both realistic and bold, writes Bassma Kodmani.