The EU foreign service has had no contact with the Syrian regime for almost a year, despite its effort to play a role in international diplomacy on the civil war.
Under EU sanctions law, the head of the European External Action Service (EEAS), Catherine Ashton, could call or even meet with Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Moualem, despite the fact he is on an EU asset freeze and visa ban list.
But EU sources say she has never done so.
Her officials in Brussels could, in t...
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Andrew Rettman is EUobserver's foreign editor, writing about foreign and security issues since 2005. He is Polish, but grew up in the UK, and lives in Brussels. He has also written for The Guardian, The Times of London, and Intelligence Online.