The importance of Lebanon for stability in the whole of the Middle East was the focus of the official visit of European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management Christos Stylianides to Lebanon on Wednesday 4 April.
During his visit, Stylianides assured Lebanon's Prime Minister Saad Hariri that the EU will continue to help Lebanon respond to the needs of the million Syrian refugees the country is hosting. The same message was delivered to the minister for social affairs, Pierre Bou Assi, and to the minister of state for refugees, Mouïn Merhebi.
"The stability and economic prosperity of Lebanon are a prerequisite for the stability of the whole region. This is a clear priority of the EU", Stylianides said when he met the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, Nabih Berri. Speaking at the opening of a conference on diversity in unity and fundamental freedoms for Christians and Muslims in the Middle East, which was organised by the Lebanese parliament, Stylianides underlined the fact that "the impartiality of our humanitarian aid makes it an important element for reconciliation".
The European Commission has allocated €769 million in humanitarian aid to Lebanon since 2011 in response to the Syrian crisis. A large part of the non-humanitarian aid for Syria's neighbouring countries is channelled through the MADAD special regional trust fund, which is mainly aimed at responding to the long-term needs of Syrian refugees in the neighbouring countries. Lebanon is at the forefront of these countries. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)