Canada is providing $229 million to help Syria and neighboring countries hosting refugees. The aid package includes $169 million for food, clean water, hygiene, and health services, as well as support for women facing sexual and domestic violence.

International Development Minister Harjit Sajan announced the funding as Canada takes part in an international conference in Brussels on finding a political solution to the conflict in Syria.

The conflict, which has lasted over 10 years, followed a violent crackdown by the Assad regime against pro-democracy protests in 2011, which escalated into a civil war.

The aid package will also assist Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq, where many Syrian refugees have fled from the Moscow-backed President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Some of the aid will help purchase grain for the region, which usually relies on wheat from Ukraine as a staple food source.

But the conflict and the Russian forces' closure of Ukrainian ports have endangered its wheat supplies. Ukraine has warned that Russian forces are looting grain stores while the men who would have planted the next crop are fighting.

Ukraine is also a major exporter of sunflower oil, which is also imported by countries in the Middle East.

A spokesperson for Sajan said Canadian aid will be channeled through the United Nations and international relief agencies, including the Red Cross and Red Crescent, and not through the Assad regime.

Canada has allocated $60 million for development assistance, focusing on "empowering women and girls," promoting gender equality, and supporting social services for women.

"As we enter another year of conflict in Syria, millions of people still need urgent help. Starting with providing clean water and food to offering support for health, rights, and freedoms.

Sajan said in a statement, "We must work to end this terrible humanitarian disaster." The United Nations said the civil war in Syria has claimed over 350,000 lives, including more than 27,000 children.

But the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimates the actual death toll exceeds 600,000, saying thousands have died from torture in government-run prisons.

The Assad regime is supported by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who provided Russian military assistance to the Syrian president, including bombing opposition-held areas.

The Syrian president is one of the few worldwide who expressed support for Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. The World Food Program said the aid package was "generous and timely," as Syrian families faced choosing between buying food, fuel, or medicine.

Julie Marshall of the World Food Program in Canada said the conflict in Ukraine has affected access to food worldwide. She added, "The conflict in Ukraine has caused food and fuel prices to rise, putting millions at risk of hunger, as families cannot afford the cost of a basic meal."