Marisa Matias, a member of the European Parliament, has stressed that Europe’s goal in Syria should be to preserve the unity of that country.
Matias, who is based in Brussels, is the chair of the European Parliament's delegation for relations with the Mashreq countries (Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria). In an email interview with Al-Monitor, Matias referred to a widespread misunderstanding within the EU that the Syrian conflict is of an ethnic and religious nature. She warned that such a view risks undermining the goal of a “united Syria.”