Close to $11bn (£7.5bn) in aid was pledged by donors at an global conference in London on 4 February, along with around $40bn (£27bn) in loans to support the creation of jobs and stimulate the economies of Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, who between them have taken in more than three million refugees.
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U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was no more upbeat.
A spokesman said the US State Department had no immediate comment on the issue of Saudi Arabia’s involvement, but added that “in general we want members of the coalition against Daesh to look for ways to do more and to contribute more”.
Addressing the summit, US Secretary of State Kerry said $600 million (537 million euros) in new funding would go on urgent aid to refugees and beleaguered populations in and around Syria.
Thursday’s conference aims to agree plans for economic and educational projects to assist 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in Jordan, Lebanon and other neighboring countries.
But Ms Bishop says taken collectively, Australia’s financial aid to military, humanitarian and refugee settlement from Syria and Iraq has totalled more than AU $1.5 billion to date.
The announcement comes a day after United Nations peace talks skidded to a halt, sparking doubts about whether the civil war can be ended through worldwide diplomatic talks.
He said: “No one spoke to us of naturalizing the refugees”.
Meanwhile, rebels in the Syrian city of Aleppo are now surrounded from the north, south and east following advances by government forces and pro-regime fighters.
“Looking into the eyes of my people, and seeing the hardship … they carry, I must tell you we have reached our limit”, said Jordan’s King Abdullah. Its focus is on both assistance to Syrians and the humanitarian crisis faced by countries surrounding Syria.
There was broad agreement at the conference, though, that the only enduring way to address the humanitarian crisis was to end the fighting in Syria between the forces of President Bashar al-Assad and a fragmented array of opposition groups, some of whom are also fighting one another.
Britain has already committed £1.1 billion in aid since the start of the crisis in 2011 – as much as Germany, France and Italy combined. World leaders have emphasized the importance of meeting the $9 billion target; previous year they failed to raise even half of a $2.9 billion target set by the United Nations for similar purposes. “Our country will continue to do what we can do to help those in need, but it cannot be at the expense of our own people’s welfare”.
In a statement announcing the pledge, British Prime Minister David Cameron said the funds could “provide the sense of hope needed to stop people thinking they have no option but to risk their lives on a risky journey to Europe”.
At the time of going to press, Germany had pledged €2.3 billion ($2.5 billion) in aid for Syrians by 2018, the United Kingdom said it would double its support to over £2.3 billion ($3.3 billion) and Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg pledged $1.1 billion over the next four years. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the two had also agreed to try to ensure the pause in the talks was as short as possible.
“It is not the end, and it is not the failure of the talks”, de Mistura told reporters after a meeting with opposition leaders.
Elsewhere in Syria, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced that food and relief aid had been delivered Wednesday to more than 12,000 in the besieged rebel-held town of Moadamiyeh near Damascus.
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“The coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield”, he said.
