Brussels, 14/07/2011 (Agence Europe) - In a speech in Cairo on the EU's response to the Arab spring, the president of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, said on Thursday 14 July that reforms promised by the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, were “weak and have yet to be fulfilled”. Barroso pointed out that the EU had already “increased sanctions twice” but that they would “continue to push for urgent change” in Syria. He described the human cost of the crackdown as “intolerable”, speaking of “nearly 2,000 dead and 10,000 detained”. Last week, he welcomed ambassadors from France and the United States in the rebel town of Hama (Centre), which caused anger in Damascus. (L.C./transl.jl)