Brussels/Beirut, May 20 (EFE).- The European Union has agreed to lift all remaining economic sanctions on Syria, in a move aimed at ing the country’s post-conflict recovery following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Dec. 2024.
While sanctions related to human rights violations and Assad’s inner circle will remain, the decision marks a significant shift in the EU’s policy toward Damascus.
On Tuesday, EU foreign ministers reached an agreement during a Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the suspension of sanctions is meant to boost Syria’s economic stabilization.
“This decision is reversible and conditional on continued progress. There can be no peace without a path toward economic recovery. We all need a stable Syria,” said Kallas at a press conference.
The EU had already eased restrictions in February, suspending sanctions on Syria’s energy and transport sectors and removing five state-linked entities from the sanctions list, including the Industrial Bank and Syrian Arab Airlines.
Exceptions were also introduced to facilitate humanitarian aid and reconstruction efforts.
Diplomatic sources confirmed Tuesday’s decision lifts remaining sanctions related primarily to the financial sector.
The EU’s broader aimed, as expressed by Kallas, is to a “Syrian-led and inclusive political transition.”
European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen welcomed the move in a post on social media: “The path to recovery is long, but Europe is ready to work with Syria along the way. Reconciliation is the first crucial step toward reconstruction.”
Council President António Costa echoed that message, adding: “This shows the EU continues to stand with the Syrian people, as we have in the past and will in the future.”
‘Historic’ celebration in Syria as isolation ends
The Syrian government hailed the EU’s decision as a turning point. Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani described it as a “new historic achievement,” just days after the United States announced a similar lifting of sanctions.
“Alongside our Syrian people, we are witnessing a historic victory as the EU lifts sanctions on Syria. We thank all EU countries and everyone who contributed to this success,” al-Shaibani posted on X (formerly Twitter).
He added that the move would enhance national security and promote long-term stability and prosperity: “Syria deserves a bright future worthy of its people and its civilization.”
According to Syrian officials, the lifting of sanctions will ease restrictions on trade, open access to international financial markets, and attract foreign investment, though structural reforms will be essential.
“Recovery won’t happen overnight,” Economy Minister Mohammad Nidal al-Shaar told EFE earlier this month. “But this is a critical first step.”
Syria: The road ahead, after Assad and after war
Syria’s civil war, which erupted in 2011, left over 350,000 people dead, 7.2 million internally displaced people, and 6.2 million refugees, according to the United Nations Agency for the Refugees (UNHCR).
The Assad regime, backed by Russia and Iran, clung to power through years of conflict. But the regime collapsed in Dec. 2024 after a brief internal uprising and loss of key military .
Though international attention has shifted elsewhere in recent years, the humanitarian crisis in Syria remains severe. Over 90% of the population lives in poverty, and large parts of the country’s infrastructure lie in ruins.
EU officials emphasized that the sanctions relief does not imply for the former regime, but rather a recognition of Syria’s new transitional leadership under interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa.
In March, EU leaders pledged for a Syrian-led peace process.
While Brussels and Washington have now lifted economic restrictions, the UN has urged continued monitoring of human rights conditions and war crimes investigations. EFE
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