Foreign Minister Uri Rosenthal has confirmed that the Netherlands’ embassy in the Syrian capital Damascus is remaining open. His statement follows the United States’ decision to close its embassy in Damascus and repatriate all its personnel.

Mr Rosenthal said the US move was due to the specific security situation. As far as is known, no European Union countries are considering closing their embassies in Syria.

He went on to say that the Dutch embassy was the “eyes and ears” of the Netherlands in Syria. The Dutch presence makes contact with the opposition possible, and diplomats based at the embassy are able to offer help to Dutch nationals in trouble in Syria.

He did say however that the Netherlands was keeping a close eye on the situation in Syria.