Defending and safeguarding cultural heritage in Syria
6.11.2017
Question for written answer P-006812-17
to the Commission
Rule 130
Silvia Costa (S&D) , Patrizia Toia (S&D) , Luigi Morgano (S&D) , Sabine Verheyen (PPE) , Stefano Maullu (PPE) , Mircea Diaconu (ALDE) , Helga Trüpel (Verts/ALE) , Curzio Maltese (GUE/NGL)
In view of the following:
- —The continuous destruction of cultural heritage perpetrated by ISIL/Da’esh in Palmyra and other Unesco archaeological heritage sites in the Southern Mediterranean and Middle East since early 2015;
- —The commitments undertaken through UN resolution No 2347 and Parliament’s resolution of 30 April 2015, which called on the Commission to outline measures and resources for documenting, securing and recovering Syrian cultural heritage;
- —Commission Decision C(2016)6767 on the 2016 Special measure for the Syrian population, in which the Commission earmarked EUR 2 million for defending and safeguarding Syrian cultural heritage through Unesco action, together with other funds for financing existing projects;
- —Subsequent modifications to the above decision owing to the absence of a clause ensuring that EU restrictive measures currently in force against Syria are upheld within the framework of executive agreements with UN agencies;
- —The fact that negotiations on including such a clause seem to have been concluded with the UN,
What measures has the Commission adopted to ensure that adequate resources are effectively and urgently made available for defending and safeguarding cultural heritage in Syria?