US issues orders easing Syria sanctions after Trump pledge

Washington: The Trump administration on Friday issued orders that it said would effectively lift sanctions on Syria, after President Donald Trump earlier 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 U.S. 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. 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. Sharaa led militias that overthrew Assad in December.

The general license specifically names Sharaa, formerly sanctioned under the name Abu Muhammad al-Jawlani, among the individuals and entities with whom transactions are now authorized.

It also lists Syrian Arab Airlines, the Central Bank of Syria and a number of other banks, several state oil and gas companies and the Four Seasons Damascus hotel.

Trump unexpectedly announced last week that he would lift the sanctions at the behest of Saudi Arabia's crown prince, a major U.S. policy shift he made before meeting briefly with Sharaa in Riyadh.

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 U.S. has imposed layers of measures against Syria, cutting it off from the international banking system and barring many international imports, and the potential for sanctions on a country to return can chill private-sector investment.

The U.S. first put the country on its state sponsor of terrorism list in 1979 and since then has added additional sets of sanctions, including several rounds following the country’s 2011 uprising against Assad.