US Issues Orders Easing Syria Sanctions

(MENAFN- Gulf Times) The Trump administration issued orders on Friday that it said would effectively lift sanctions on Syria, after President Donald Trump this month pledged to unwind the measures to help the country rebuild after a devastating civil war.
The Treasury Department issued a general license that authorizes transactions involving the interim Syrian government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, as well as the central bank and state-owned enterprises.
The general license, known as GL25, "authorizes transactions prohibited by the Syrian Sanctions Regulations, effectively lifting sanctions on Syria," the Treasury said in a statement.
"GL25 will enable new investment and private sector activity consistent with the President's America First strategy," the statement said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio also issued a 180-day waiver under the Caesar Act to ensure that sanctions do not obstruct investment and to facilitate the provision of electricity, energy, water and sanitation and enable humanitarian efforts, he said in a statement.
"Today's actions represent the first step in delivering on the President's vision of a new relationship between Syria and the United States," Rubio said, adding that Trump had made clear his expectation that sanctions relief would be followed by action by the Syrian government.
The White House said after Trump met Sharaa last week that the president asked Syria to adhere to several conditions in exchange for sanctions relief, including telling all foreign militants to leave Syria, deporting what he called Palestinian terrorists, and helping the US prevent the resurgence of ISIS.
"President Trump is providing the Syrian government with the chance to promote peace and stability, both within Syria and in Syria's relations with its neighbors," Rubio said.
Syria welcomed the sanctions waiver early Saturday, which the Foreign Ministry called a "positive step in the right direction to alleviate the country's humanitarian and economic suffering."
Syria is keen on cooperating with other countries "on the basis of mutual respect and non-interference in internal affairs. It believes that dialogue and diplomacy are the best path to building balanced relations," the ministry said in a statement.
Most of the U.S. sanctions on Syria were imposed on the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and key individuals in 2011 after civil war erupted there.
It is hoped that easing Syria sanctions will clear the way for greater engagement by humanitarian organizations working in Syria, encouraging foreign investment and trade as the country rebuilds. But the US has imposed layers of measures against Syria, cutting it off from the international banking system and barring many imports, and the potential for sanctions on a country to return can chill private-sector investment.
The US ambassador to Turkiye, who has assumed the role of Syria envoy, said Saturday he had met the country's interim leader following Washington's lifting of sanctions on the war-torn country.
Tom Barrack, who met with interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Istanbul, said in a statement: "I reiterated the United States' support for the Syrian people after so many years of conflict and violence."

MENAFN24052025000067011011ID1109591472