Developments in the Middle East were also high on the agenda. Today we reached the political agreement to begin easing sanctions on Syria. This could give a boost to the Syrian economy and help the country get back on its feet. While we aim to move fast, we also are ready to reverse the course if the situation worsens. In parallel, we will scale up humanitarian aid and recovery efforts.
On Israel and Palestine. The release of Israeli hostages is good news. Palestinians are returning to the north of Gaza. The ceasefire is fragile, but it is holding. We are supporting its implementation, including by redeploying our civilian mission to Rafah to supervise border checks. Reopening the crossing will allow the transfer of injured individuals out of Gaza for treatment.
On Lebanon, we already scaled up our support with €60 million for its armed forces and we also agreed today that the situation is ripe to have a European Union-Lebanon Association Council during this year.