ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The return of Syrian asylum-seekers and refugees from Europe should be “dignified” and “voluntary,” a senior European Union official told Rudaw, emphasizing the importance of addressing obstacles hindering their return, including “instability and economic crises.”
Michael Ohnmacht, the European Union Charge d’Affaires to Syria, told Rudaw on Friday that the return of Syrian refugees, while “a fundamental right for any person,” must be both “dignified” and “voluntary.” He noted that around three million Syrians have already returned to their homes, both from within Syria and from abroad.
Acknowledging the “obstacles and problems” hindering refugee returns, including ongoing “instability and the economic crisis,” Ohnmacht emphasized the need to provide the “appropriate conditions” for repatriation. He added that “the European Union wants to work with the authorities and international organizations to build these conditions.”
Following a swift offensive in December last year, a coalition of opposition forces led by the now-dissolved Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - then headed by the current interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa - overthrew the regime of longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad.
The ouster of Assad prompted a temporary pause in the processing of Syrian asylum applications across the EU, ending a decade-long trend in which Syrians were the largest group seeking protection.
According to the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA), Syrian asylum applications fell by over 66 percent in the first half of 2025, dropping from approximately 16,000 in October 2024 to just 3,100 by August 2025. The EUAA attributed the decline to the “new Syrian authorities advocating for stability and reconstruction.”
Despite this, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) cautioned that "sustainable return depends on livelihoods, essential services, and conditions that allow refugees to live in dignity," underscoring the severe repercussions of large-scale, unsafe repatriation.”
In March, Sharaa approved a 53-article constitutional declaration grounded in Islamic jurisprudence. The declaration requires that the president be Muslim, sets a five-year transitional period, and retains the name Syrian Arab Republic. Leaders from Syria’s Kurdish, Alawite, and Druze communities have criticized the constitution as exclusionary.
Ohnmacht told Rudaw that “the constitution of any country must reflect the will of the people with all their components” and should “reflect human rights,” including “the role of women.”
He further emphasized the importance of dialogue among Syria’s diverse ethnic and religious communities to resolve outstanding issues such as amendments to the interim constitution, governance structures, language rights, and the integration of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
Following is the full transcript of the interview with Michael Ohnmacht, the European Union Charge d'Affaires to Syria.
Rudaw: Mr. Ohnmacht, the issue of Syrian migrants and refugees in European Union countries is a major one, and you are here on the ground, do you actually see that the situation in Syria allows for the return of refugees?
Michael Ohnmacht: Firstly, the return of refugees is considered a fundamental right for any person. We in the European Union, in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), emphasize the importance of this return being voluntary, a personal decision for the refugee himself, but it must also be a dignified return.
Nevertheless, obstacles such as instability and the economic crisis still remain. We have seen many refugees or displaced persons return to their homes, and as I mentioned, we consider this a right for every person. But the provision of appropriate conditions for this is also important, and the European Union wants to work with the authorities and international organizations to build these conditions that allow for a dignified and voluntary return.
Mr. Ohnmacht, is the current situation in Syria suitable that it is possible to repatriate refugees by a European decision, for example?
No, I do not think we have changed our position on that. The return must be dignified, and the conditions must allow for it. As we have seen, more than three million refugees and displaced persons have returned to their homes, but we know the obstacles and problems that exist, for example in the services sector or education and schools. The important thing is that the possibility exists for this personal choice.
Are the European Union's efforts still limited to humanitarian aid only, or have they moved to the stage of infrastructure rehabilitation and reconstruction in Syria?
That is the big goal. We recently attended the National Dialogue Conference, which was held for the first time in Syria, and we were working in coordination with the Syrian authorities, the foreign ministry, the social affairs ministry and with civil society organizations. We talked a lot, and this was one of the core topics. Despite that, we certainly need to start this transition from humanitarian aid only to early recovery and economic recovery, and this is a common goal for everyone. However, at the present time, there is still a desperate need for humanitarian aid, and we must not forget that.
Do you still consider the Islamic State (ISIS) organization to pose a danger to Syria and the region?
Absolutely, this is nothing new, and the large international coalition against ISIS exists, and there are many components playing a role in that.
First, we are monitoring Syria's official joining of this global coalition to defeat the Islamic State organization, and we consider the organization a danger that is still present. Of course, it is difficult to know the exact extent of the danger, but it is important that we in the European Union and others work hard and put all efforts into this matter. This is not only for our benefit but for the benefit of the entire Syrian people, wherever they are. This is how we also recognize the role of some forces in the past. We saw the terrorist attack in June against the Mar Elias Church in Damascus, and this is evidence of the danger of the ISIS organization, which killed many innocent people without any reason, and thus we saw once again that this danger is still present even now.
The Kurds, Druze, and Alawites rejected the constitutional declaration of the interim authorities in Syria. What are your observations regarding this Constitutional Declaration?
I saw that the Kurdish Unity Conference had a position on that, and I do not know if we can say that the Alawites and Druze rejected this, but it is not the role of the European Union to intervene in these Syrian-Syrian discussions and between the components.
However, the constitution of any country must reflect the will of the people with all their components. As for whether the European Union sees this as permissible or not? I think it is important that any constitution reflects human rights, the role of women, and is the result of the will of all the people. We are in a transitional phase, and we must not forget that.
But a note, Mr. Ohnmacht, this constitutional declaration is considered a temporary constitution for Syria, and it has maintained the Arab identity, meaning there are no national or cultural rights for the Kurds. I am asking you here about your experience in drafting constitutions; in your opinion, how should the constitution in Syria be?
This is up to the will of the Syrian people with all their components, and this is important. And I think that human rights and cultural rights are an important part, and if I understood correctly, there has been an agreement between the [Kurdish-led] Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Syrian interim government in Damascus since the tenth of March, and we need to implement that. There are serious discussions and negotiations now, and I think - if I understood correctly - that all parties are engaged in serious negotiations, and as I said, we are in a transitional phase, and change is always possible, and I think that negotiations and discussions among everyone are an important part, and we will see the result of that.
According to the principles of human rights and the principles of the European Union, do you support the rights of the Kurds in Syria?
It is necessary to achieve human rights and the absence of racial discrimination. I have seen announcements, and I also understood from meetings with the SDF and their representatives here in Damascus and with the government, that there are discussions and proposals about the system and how to integrate, and this is something we are monitoring. The parties must speak with the people.
Considering the Kurds are the second-largest nationality in Syria and wish for their children to receive education in the Kurdish language, do you support these rights?
This is not European intervention; there are different systems even in Europe linguistically, but I think that language is a wealth and culture is a wealth, and the state can benefit from this wealth. However, this must be the result of a process among all components. I am from Germany, and the situation there is different from the situation in France or other countries, but in Europe, we have linguistic, cultural, and civilizational pluralism, and we benefit from that.
There are internal and external demands to transform the system of governance in Syria into a decentralized, federal system. Why did the European Union not include this topic among the topics of the National Dialogue Conference in Damascus?
The National Dialogue Conference and its schedule were the result of initial coordination between us and civil society and the authorities, and the result of the short-term research of some institutions. It was a choice by everyone. If you look at the other topics, they are also very important topics. And as was written in the conference, this is the first step, and I think that discussing the political system in the future is very important. It is not the role of the European Union to take a position; in Europe, as I said, we have countries that follow a federal system and others that follow a more centralized system. So, this must be the result of the discussions, and we, as we said, are facing a constitutional declaration, and soon there will be a People's Council, and we have seen the designation of roles in that, and it will end soon.
The parliamentary elections also did not include the areas in northeast Syria (Rojava), nor did they include the Druze-majority Suwayda province in southern Syria. This means that a great number of members from Syria’s minority groups do not include minority areas.
Of course, all components need representation, and we will see how things go. We have seen the obstacles to achieving that, and we will see that in the future and I think that this will also be one of the results of the negotiations between the SDF and the government and the same thing in Suwayda. Of course, the situation will be better if there is participation from these provinces and I think the issue is not finished yet.
What is your vision for women's rights in Syria after the fall of longtime dictator Bashar al-Assad’s regime?
This is a fundamental part of human rights. We are against all discrimination, whether based on gender, religious, or ethnic origin. It is important to achieve human rights. We are in a difficult phase, but I think it must be recognized that women will play a fundamental role, not just in civil society, but in the new Syria as well. We emphasized at the National Dialogue Conference that human rights and women's rights are core axes of discussion, and we have international standards for that, and I do not see a rejection of this from the authorities.
Kurdish civil society organizations in northeast Syria (Rojava) say they did not receive appropriate attention during the National Dialogue Conference. Why is that?
I do not know, and symbolically, and with the acceptance of the Syrian government, we saw simultaneous translation of all discussions from Arabic and English into Kurdish, and from Kurdish into Arabic and English. In my opinion, the National Dialogue was a beautiful symbol of this pluralism and the role of northeast Syria [Rojava]. We did not practice any discrimination. It is true that the number of participants from northeast Syria was limited due to logistical and financial necessities, but as I said, this is a first step and not the last.
In the next National Dialogue, we will see additional participation, as well as participation from Suwayda, whose inability to attend was regrettable, and I think the responsibility was not on one party but was a personal decision of some figures. I think the National Dialogue was a great success, but there are always possibilities for it to be better in the future.
Does the European Union attach attention to the camps for ISIS families located in areas controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)?
Of course. Firstly, in this file, we are monitoring Syria's official participation in that and we talked about the negotiations between the SDF and the government to implement and realize the agreements, and I think this is part of it. But there is also the humanitarian part other than the political part, and the European Union, through our humanitarian aid agency, is helping with that in cooperation with the UNHCR. This is part of other programs that the European Union is helping with, because this is a humanitarian crisis that needs to be addressed, and we have a special interest in that.
Does the European Union pay attention to the areas of northeast Syria (Rojava)? Are the areas of Northeast Syria within your projects?
Of course, we do not have discrimination in Syria. This was even before the fall of the regime; we were not working with the former Ba'ath regime, but we were working in the north, whether the northeast or the northwest, with our humanitarian aid. We do not have any discrimination in the programs; Syria in all its parts is the whole of Syria. Thus, we do not prevent ourselves from any projects in the northeast or the northwest. Syria is one, and this is important.
Civil society organizations in northeast Syria (Rojava), or perhaps they fear that after the fall of the regime, attention will be directed more to Damascus and they fear marginalization.
I do not think that is true, but of course, the danger exists, and we must all work together to avoid that. We are present in Damascus, but we had special visits from the humanitarian aid organization [European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations] ECHO, and they are present, and we had visits from other European Union agencies, and we care about all regions; the possibilities are not limitless.
There are also displacement camps for individuals from the Kurdish-majority areas of Sari Kani (Ras al-Ain) and Gire Spi (Tal Abyad). Do you provide any support?
Of course, as we said, refugees and displaced persons have the right to return to their regions and we will see the implementation of that. This will also be the result of the negotiations. We do not have discrimination; people have the right to return to their homes, no matter which component they belong to, whether Kurdish, Arab, Sunni, Alawite, or Druze. The important thing is that the rights are the same for everyone. There are problems, but we have seen the return of about two million displaced persons in some areas of Syria, and we will soon see the return of the displaced from the northeast and the northwest to their homes. We want that, and the achievement is difficult, and as we said, the differences are not great between the regions; there may be special problems that differ from one region to another, but the important thing is that we all go together.
The primary responsibility falls on the authorities to allow this return, and we will soon see all the displaced return from wherever they came from and whatever camp they reside in. Life in the camps is not a dignified life, and I think we must make every effort to change that. The European Union has always supported that without any discrimination, as the region is on our way with our humanitarian partners in this file.
When will you visit the areas of northeast Syria (Rojava)?
As soon as possible. I want to visit all of Syria. Of course, we started here in Damascus, and Syria is not a small country, but we will soon see visits to all regions.