In May 2025, the European Syriac Union (ESU)intensified its strategic diplomatic and political efforts across Europe, further advancing its core mission: to secure international recognition and a constitutionally enshrined political status for the Syriac people in Bethnahrin (Mesopotamia).
These efforts are rooted in a single, unwavering objective: to ensure the Syriac people’s continued existence—both in their ancestral homeland and throughout the diaspora—as a recognized, protected, and institutionally represented people under international law.
High-Level Consultations in Berlin
In the German capital of Berlin, ESU representatives held a series of high-level meetings with political parties, humanitarian organizations, diplomatic missions, and media outlets. These discussions addressed the structural challenges faced by the Syriac population in Bethnahrin, including their fundamental rights claims and, most notably, their demand for a legitimate and sustainable political status.
Parliamentary Engagements in Brussels and The Hague
At the European Parliament in Brussels, ESU engaged with multiple political groups, emphasizing the Syriac people’s historical, cultural, and political presence in the region. The message was clear: the Syriac population in Bethnahrin must be guaranteed a rights-based status within a democratic and pluralistic framework.
In the Dutch Parliament, ESU representatives participated in panel discussions that explored diaspora-homeland relations, the preservation of Syriac identity, and international solidarity mechanisms that can support their cause.
Expanding Outreach in Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, and Austria
Throughout May, the ESU continued its outreach efforts in Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, and Austria. The agenda in these meetings focused on key themes: constitutional guarantees for Syriac rights, the right to mother-tongue education, religious freedom, administrative participation, and local self-governance.
Across all consultations, the central message remained consistent: the demand for internationally recognized political status for the Syriac people in Bethnahrin is both legitimate and urgent.
Community Solidarity Event in Giessen
A significant solidarity evening held in Giessen, Germany, brought together representatives from across the Syriac community—political parties, civil society organizations, and community leaders. The event served both as a platform for raising financial support and as a forum to affirm collective commitment to the political cause.
Particular emphasis was placed on the diaspora’s role in supporting the people of Bethnahrin, and on mobilizing sustained, coordinated efforts to advance the status cause on the international stage.
Conclusion and Strategic Outlook
All of ESU’s engagements in May 2025 were guided by one strategic goal: not only the recognition of the Syriac people’s historical and current presence in Bethnahrin, but the attainment of an institutionalized, constitutional, and internationally endorsed political status.
Encouraging feedback and explicit messages of support have already been received from several political actors and institutions.
The European Syriac Union will continue its proactive and determined diplomacy across Europe until the Syriac people—both in Bethnahrin and in the diaspora—achieve the recognition, protection, and political status they are rightfully entitled to under international law.
