Ambassador Marten Kokk, who led the Estonian delegation to the conference held this week in Brussels, said: "Syria has 2.4 million children of school age who cannot attend school and who are at the greatest risk of becoming victims of child labor, early and forced marriage, human trafficking and recruitment into military groups."

"Over the past year, humanitarian needs have increased due to the earthquake in February, a cholera outbreak and a deteriorating socio-economic situation. It is also crucial to ensure unhindered humanitarian access, including cross-border access, to those in need," Kokk went on, via a Ministry of Foreign Affairs press release.

At the Brussels conference, Estonia pledged €60,000 to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) plus €40,000 to UNICEF.

Over a decade since the start of the civil war there, Syria is reportedly suffering one of the most complex humanitarian crises in the world. 14.6 million people are in need of humanitarian aid, including 4.3 million women, 6.5 million children and 4.2 million people with special needs, the foreign ministry says.

The conflict also impacts neighboring states, who have been hosting millions of people who have been forced to flee Syria, as well as countries further afield, including in Europe.

Russia has been backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime since the conflict started in 2011, officially only in air combat plus a small ground forces component, but in practice much more extensively than that, including with the use of organized mercenary firms.

Ambassador Kokk also noted the importance of a comprehensive and meaningful political solution in Syria, which would be in line with UN Security Council resolution 2254 passed in December 2015, and meet the legitimate expectations of all Syrians.

OCHA is the central coordinator of providing life-saving humanitarian aid in Syria and the region.

UNICEF supports activities in Syria aimed at protecting children from violence, enduring their education, ensuring health and food services, and clean drinking water and sanitary conditions.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!