TOKYO (AP) — Dozens of countries meeting Friday to discuss sanctions on the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad condemned the deteriorating humanitarian situation there but also began looking ahead to ways to help the nation recover once Assad is no longer in power.

The “Friends of the Syrian People” coalition’s working group on sanctions concluded the one-day meeting with a call for increased pressure on Assad to stop the violence in his country. Activists say the fighting has claimed more than 40,000 lives and escalated into a full-blown civil war.