EU calls on Syrian opposition to participate actively in Geneva conference

The European Union (EU) on Monday called on the Syrian opposition to come together and participate actively at the upcoming Geneva conference. According to a conclusion adopted by the EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, the EU welcomes the call of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon for a peace conference in Geneva before the end of November. The EU urged all sides of the conflict to respond positively to this call and to adhere publicly to a "credible political transition based on the full implementation of the Geneva Communique". "The EU stands ready to continue engaging with and to support the Coalition in these endeavors and its relations with the international community at large," said the conclusion. The conclusion said that the EU is seriously concerned with the growing involvement of extremist and foreign nonstate actors in the fighting in Syria, which is further fueling the conflict and posing a threat to regional stability. "The EU calls on all relevant parties to halt the support to these groups," said it. In the conclusion, the EU reaffirms its commitment as the largest donor to providing assistance, including humanitarian aid, to the Syrian people on a continuing basis, which now amounts to about 2 billion euros (about 2.7 billion U.S. dollars), and agrees on the attached common messages on humanitarian aspects of the Syria crisis.