A set of heavily enforced US sanctions on Syria, imposed under former President Bashar al-Assad, could be lifted within weeks after their withdrawal was included in a comprehensive defense policy bill that Congress is expected to pass in the coming days.
The Senate and the House of Representatives included the abolition of the so-called The Caesar sanctions, a move seen as key to Syria’s economic recovery, were included in a compromise version of the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) introduced on Sunday.
The provision in the 3,000-page bill repeals the 2019 Caesar Act and mandates regular White House reports certifying that the Syrian government is committed to countering ISIS militants, protecting religious and ethnic minorities, and not conducting unilateral, unprovoked military operations against its neighbors, including Israel.
The NDAA is expected to be passed by the end of the year and signed by President Donald Trump, whose Republicans hold majorities in both the Senate and the House of Representatives and lead the committees that drafted the bill. The lifting of sanctions is seen as key to the success of the new Syrian government. Several Saudi companies plan to invest billions in Syria as part of Riyadh’s efforts to support the country’s recovery. US sanctions have been one of the biggest obstacles to economic recovery.
In May, during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Trump announced plans to lift all sanctions on Syria, and his administration temporarily suspended them. However, Caesar sanctions, as the most severe form of restrictions, can only be permanently lifted by an act of Congress.
The 2019 Caesar Act imposed broad sanctions against Syria, targeting individuals, companies and institutions linked to Assad, who ruled the country from 2000 until his ouster in 2024 by rebel forces led by Sharaa. Syria’s Central Bank Governor AbdulKader Husrieh told Reuters last week that the economy was growing faster than expected and described the lifting of numerous US sanctions as a “miracle”.
The sanctions bear the name of a Syrian military photographer, codenamed “Caesar,” who smuggled thousands of harrowing photographs documenting torture and war crimes committed by the Assad regime.
(Vijesti.ba)
