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The European Union (EU) last week held a conference in Brussels discussing the appropriate response to the Syrian civil war.

On the EU's External Action website, the crisis was described as "one of the worst humanitarian crises the world has faced since World War II," and as having "an increasingly destabilizing impact on the wider region through the displacement of people."

The site also pointed out that the Syrian war exacerbates "political and sectarian differences and the spread of terrorism."

However, the EU emphasized that "there can be no military solution to the conflict," and that "only a political solution, as defined in the UN Security Council Resolution 2254 and the 2012 Geneva Communiqué, will ensure lasting stability in Syria, and the elimination of Da'esh (ISIS - ed.) and other UN-listed terrorist entities in the country."

The EU presented six strategic objectives in Syria, including an end to the war, promotion of demcracy, and promotion of a "meaningful and inclusive transition in Syria."

They also called for an end to the "unacceptable violence" in Syria, and "condemned" in "the strongest terms" the "widespread and systematic violations of human rights."

On their site, the EU described its aid efforts, which include both humanitarian and non-humanitarian assistance.