Belgium: Syrian crisis is most serious war of our time - Mogherini

European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini gave a press briefing in Brussels, Monday, following a meeting of EU foreign ministers. During the press conference, Mogherini stated that the ongoing conflict in Syria and the fight against the so-called Islamic State (IS, ISIS, ISIL) and other militant groups was the "most serious war that we are facing in our times." "We believe that the only way to solve this crisis is through bringing together different actors. This needs to bring results sooner rather than later, this has to be a matter of months and not years. I believe that all the actors around the table now acknowledge the need to change attitude to the crisis. It's not just one crisis, but it's the most serious war that we are facing in our times," Mogherini stated. Discussing the refugee and migrant crisis, Mogherini stressed the importance of not confusing the issue of refugees with the threat of terrorism. "No mix, no confusion between the issue of migration and refugees and the terrorist threats. Any mix, any confusion, any 'amalgam' as someone coming in this morning said would be extremely dangerous, would be extremely counterproductive for our own opinions, and for our own continent. We have a duty to protect those in need of protection that are escaping from the very same threat that we are facing in Europe today," the EU foreign policy chief stressed. Mogherini went on to praise cooperation between states in trying to achieve a political transition in Syria and improve the situation for refugees. "It is also thanks to our common and coordinated work that we've managed to bring together from Iran to Saudi Arabia, from Turkey to Egypt, from the US, from Russia leading a process that can give us some space to do three things at the same time: starting the political process for a transition in Syria, in parallel, working on a national wide ceasefire, except obviously from the fight against terrorist organisations, namely Daesh and Al-Nusra, and thirdly but not irrelevant at all, working on the humanitarian assistance on the ground, to improve the living conditions of people in Syria, and allow them to live in decent ways," she concluded.