Germany is to provide an additional €50 million ($51 million) in humanitarian aid for Syria, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Sunday on the sidelines of an international conference in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh.

Germany has advocated a relaxation of some EU sanctions against Syria following the ouster of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad as Saudi Arabia hosted Sunday an international conference on the situation in the war-shattered country.

The authorization comes after rebels toppled the Syrian government last month and is intended to allow humanitarian groups to operate more freely without running afoul of U.S. sanctions.

Germany’s foreign minister says sanctions against Syrian officials responsible for war crimes must remain in place but called for a “smart approach” to provide relief to the Syrian population after la