A new coordination and alignment of policies between the European Union and the US regarding Middle East issues has developed lately. For example, the EU announced on the 15th of November the imposition of new sanctions on four Syrian officials, in alignment with US policy, which imposed sanctions on the Syrian regime through the Caser Law. This reflects the fact that the Biden administration has made improving relations with the EU, after years of friction during the Trump era, a priority. While this newfound closeness between the US and the EU is shared across several cases across the Middle East, there are still differences and disagreements between the two parties, as crises in the Middle East reflect differently on their respective national security.  This situation is clear in the case of Syria, where there are both areas of agreement and disagreement. 

Areas of Agreement on Syria

The most important areas of agreement between Europe and America on the Syrian crisis can be summarized in the following: 

 Combatting Terrorist groups in Syria: The US still adheres to its commitment to combatting ISIS and other terrorist groups in Syria, even after its success with ending the ISIS caliphate with the help of the Kurdish “Syrian Democratic Forces” militia. This US commitment doesn’t just stem from a fear that ISIS is trying to return to the foray in Syria, but also from the fear that Al-Qaeda is trying to use Syria as a base to re-group and rebuild. Hence Washington has recently targeted members of Al-Qaeda, for example, using an MQ-9 plane to target Abdelhameed El Matar in North-West Syria.

European countries are also very keen to counter terrorist threats in Syria, which was expressed clearly by European statesmen Josep Yourel, the EU representative for foreign and security affairs in the ministerial meeting for the alliance to combat ISIS. He stated, “complete cooperation is a must to fully defeat ISIS in all parts of the world”. Despite the large setbacks suffered by ISIS, the EU still perceives it as a significant threat, and views the ongoing cooperation with the US as crucial in the fight against terrorism in Syria. 

 Prioritizing Political Solutions: The EU and the US both see that stability in Syria can only be achieved through a political settlement. There is an agreement to work with allies and the United Nations to reach a permanent political settlement in Syria, as the US has abandoned the policy of pursuing regime change in the Middle East. 

Both the US and the EU have affirmed their commitment to Security Council Resolution No 2254 that sets out the mechanisms to reach a political solution in Syria and commits the Syrian regime to the ceasefire across the country and to partake in the political process. Based on this, the US, France, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom all condemned the Syrian elections that were carried out last May as they were undertaken outside of the agreement outlined by the United Nations.

 Imposing Sanctions on Syrian Officials: The US and the EU both share a commitment to maintain the economic blockade of the Syrian regime and to sanction any of its officials that are believed to have partaken in the crackdowns against civilians. The EU last November imposed sanctions on four ministers that were appointed to the Syrian government recently, bringing the total number of officials sanctioned by the EU in Syria to 287 . The US Treasury Department on its part, and by following the Caser law agreed upon by congress 2 years ago, sanctioned several Syrian officials and armed groups close to the Syrian regime. 

  Reconstruction: The US has said it would not fund any reconstruction efforts in Syria until there is clear progress on the political front. The EU is also unlikely to commit to any efforts of reconstruction in Syria till there is progress on the political front. 

Differing Priorities 

Despite the aforementioned areas of agreement between the US and the EU on the broad strokes of dealing with the Syrian crisis, perceived threats to their national security have brought to the surface differing priorities between these two allies, which include the following: 

 Washington’s Focus on Supporting the Kurds: The US has a total of 900 soldiers stationed in northeast Syria and they are focused on supporting the Syrian Democratic Forces in their fight against ISIS. The US has reassured its Kurdish allies that it does not want to withdraw from Syria, despite repeated attacks by Iranian back militias. 

The US president himself has promised the leader of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazloum Abdy, that the US will not abandon its Kurdish allies and had sent the Leader of CENTCOM, General Kenneth McKenzie to reassure their Kurdish allies further. The head of the executive committee of the Syrian Democratic Council Elham Ahmed, the political arm of the Kurdish Protection Unit, also met with US representatives in Washington that affirmed the Biden administration will not withdraw US forces from Syria. 

  EU prioritization of the Refugee Crisis: Although, the US is focused on the military threats from Syria and the activities of the militias that are loyal to Iran in the region, EU states are more focused on the refugee crisis and the threat that emanates from it. The EU has focused its efforts on helping neighboring states to Syria to contain the spread of refugees there and prevent their entry into the EU.

 Engagement with the Syrian Regime: Despite there being agreement on refusing to establish diplomatic links with the Syrian regime, however, several EU states have reopened their embassies in Syria such as Greece, Cyprus, and Hungary. Even if they have kept the representation just at the charges d’affaires level, there are a few signs that EU states have opened communication channels with the Syrian regime to deal with the threat of “foreign fighters”. 

A humanitarian focus

There have been calls in both the US and the EU to focus more humanitarian aid to Syria, especially to civilians in areas under government control, as economic and humanitarian conditions have deteriorated significantly due to the impact of COVID-19, sectarian violence and proxy wars, as well as terrorist activities. Both the US and EU regard this situation as a source of destabilization for the region as a whole, undermining both EU and US interests.