The European Union will begin to suspend sanctions against Syria to support the country’s post-Assad transition. The ministers of the Twenty-Seven reached a political agreement at the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels and agreed on a roadmap for a gradual suspension, in order to continue to put pressure on the Islamists of Tahrir al-Sham (Hts) and their leader Ahmad Husayn al -Shara to ensure that the transition takes place with respect for democratic and minority rights.
Phase out
A large and complex regime of sanctions is in force against Syria, which “have been divided into groups”, and a “step by step” approach has been agreed upon, explained High Representative Kaya Kallas at the end of the meeting. The sanctions will not be cancelled, but only suspended, so that they can be reinstated in the event that the country’s new government does not respect the commitments made to the international community.
We will therefore begin with the elimination of those included in the first group, then “if we see steps in the right direction we can remove others”, explained the head of community diplomacy, who also warned that, on the contrary, “the lifting of sanctions can be canceled if the wrong steps are taken.”
We start with transport and energy
It is not yet clear which sectors it will start from, but entering the meeting in the morning, the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, had stated that the intention is to start with “certain sanctions applied to the energy and transport sectors and to financial institutions, which are fundamental for the financial stabilization of the country”.
Certainly, Kallas guaranteed, “those on the export of arms will not be eliminated”. In any case, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani called the decision a “positive step” in a post on X. The political decision will now have to be followed by legal work, which however could take a few weeks.
The sanctions
The EU has a series of sanctions in place that target both people and economic sectors in Syria, including a ban on the export of Syrian oil and restrictions on access to global financial channels. However, European capitals began to review their approach to Damascus after Bashar al-Assad was ousted as president in December by insurgent forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’s Islamist militias.
EU governments want to help kickstart the nation’s recovery, but many capitals have also stressed that Europe should take a gradual and reversible approach to maintaining the influence, while encouraging the new authorities in Damascus to respect the fundamental rights and to implement inclusive policies.