A/68/267 and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East to ensure that children are protected and their rights respected. 46. In the Syrian Arab Republic, where the multiplicity of armed groups in some areas of the country has further complicated humanitarian access as well as the overall protection of children, the Special Representative continued to engage in dialogue with the parties to end grave violations. The Syrian Government has recently promulgated a law prohibiting child recruitment and strengthening sanctions for crimes of sexual violence against children. Building on this development, the Special Representative, in the course of her visit, secured the Government’s commitment to establish an interministerial committee to engage with the United Nations on the protection of children. It is hoped that this first step can foster greater engagement by the Government in moving forward with the United Nations on crucial life-saving and protection activities. She also raised the issue of detention of children and highlighted the need for the Syrian authorities to immediately put an end to the practice of arrest and detention of boys on security charges. 47. Furthermore, the Special Representative interacted with representatives of the Free Syrian Army to demand that they put an end to child recruitment and that they separate children without delay. She also reminded them of their obligations under international humanitarian law. B. Working with Member States, regional organizations and partners 48. Strengthening cooperation with Member States and regional and political organizations for the protection of children has been a priority since the onset of the mandate of the Special Representative. Through field visits, she has endeavoured to establish dialogue with concerned Member States to ensure a collaborative, constructive approach to the implementation of her mandate. 49. She has also continued to engage regularly with Member States in the context of the General Assembly, Security Council and Human Rights Council. It is hoped that such interactions will include periodic briefings to interested regional groups to foster mutual understanding on how to reach common goals. 50. Building on the work of her predecessor, the Special Representative has further sought to deepen the already advanced dialogue with the European Union, including in the course of a visit to Brussels to discuss issues of common concern. In this regard, she has emphasized the importance of fostering the implementation of the European Union Guidelines on Children and Armed Conflict and the importance of the European Union utilizing all the available tools for the benefit of children affected by armed conflict. 51. Since the adoption by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) of the outcome documents of the Chicago Summit, which included specific references to children affected by armed conflict, the Office of the Special Representative has continued to engage with NATO to mainstream child protection concerns. During a visit to NATO headquarters in June, she launched an online predeployment child protection training programme and requested NATO to develop and implement measures to ensure that there were no child casualties, as well as transparent reviews and investigation mechanisms when necessary. Furthermore, in Afghanistan, the 13-41862 9/18