LONDON: The first session of a Syrian-German Joint Committee to assist Syria’s recovery took place in Damascus on Thursday.
It was co-chaired by Asaad Al-Shaibani, the foreign minister of the Syrian Arab Republic, and Geza Andreas von Geyr, German minister of state at the Federal Foreign Office.
The committee will work to foster cooperation between the countries in areas such as economic recovery, reconstruction, investment, energy, transport, civil aviation, transitional justice, missing persons and refugee issues, the Syrian Arab News Agency reported.
Also on Thursday, the nations signed an air transport agreement to enhance coordination between their civil aviation authorities and meet the requirements for direct flights between the countries.
Omar Hosari, head of the Syrian General Authority for Civil Aviation and Air Transport, said German authorities were looking at lifting restrictions on direct flights to and from Damascus, and this is expected to happen after July 27.
Flights between Syria and all European cities, except Moscow, were suspended during the civil war, which began in 2011 and ended with the fall of President Bashar Assad and his regime in December 2024.
Germany hosts the largest number of Syrian refugees in Western Europe, with at least 1 million residing in the country. The Syrian government has reaffirmed that it will encourage the “voluntary” return of its citizens from Europe, and many international sanctions on Syria have been lifted to assist the country in its recovery.
In March, the Syrian president, Ahmad Al-Sharaa, met Germany’s chancellor, Friedrich Merz, and president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, to discuss investments by Berlin and efforts to repatriate Syrian refugees.
