US Ambassador Samantha Power to Attend Syria Pledging Conference in Kuwait

US Mission to the United Nations announced that US Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power will lead the US Delegation to the third High-Level International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria in Kuwait City.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) Samantha Power will lead the US Delegation to the third High-Level International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria in Kuwait City, according to a US Mission to the United Nations press release.

“Ambassador Power will deliver remarks for the US Delegation at the conference and announce the United States’ financial pledge,” the press release, issued on Monday, said.

Representatives from UN Member States, UN agencies, non-governmental and regional organizations will attend the event on March 31, the US Mission added.

The pledging conference will raise finances for humanitarian needs in Syria and neighbouring countries suffering from the ongoing conflict there.

“To date, the US government has committed over $3 billion in humanitarian assistance funding for the Syrian response, the largest donation of any country,” the press release said.

At present, 12.2 million people in Syria are in need of humanitarian aid as half the country’s pre-war population is displaced, according to the press release.

The Syrian army has been fighting against several opposition and rebel groups, including the Islamic State (ISIL) and the al-Nusra Front (Jabhat al-Nusra), since the conflict in the country began four years ago.

The ongoing civil war in Syria has claimed 220,000 lives since 2011, according to UN estimates.