Panel 2: Humanitarian Assistance Amidst Great Power Competition in Syria

Beginning in 2014, the UN Security Council authorized humanitarian actors to provide cross-border assistance to areas of Syria outside of government control, requiring the notification but not the approval of the Syrian government. As Russian-Syrian ties have grown closer, and as tensions between Russia and other powers have increased, the periodic efforts to secure Security Council authorization have grown more strained, threatening both relief operations and the millions of Syrians who rely on them. This panel will explore how humanitarian actors can prevent the politicization of aid in Syria amidst shifting geopolitical currents and navigate a challenging international political environment.