On Monday, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order ending the legal framework of US sanctions imposed on Syria, which was originally aimed at punishing the regime of Bashar al -Assad, but later became an obstacle to the country’s recovery after the war.
This comes after a major shift in US policy towards Syria, after Trump announced on May 13 his intention to lift all sanctions, and his meeting with Syrian President Ahmed Al -Shara.
The American special envoy to Syria, Thomas Barak, described the executive matter as “a comprehensive opportunity to restart the Syrian economy,” stressing that “the president and the Foreign Minister are not seeking to build a state, but rather a chance.”
The executive order will enter the implementation on Tuesday, and it will cancel the declaration of a state of national emergency regarding Syria, which was issued in 2004, according to the “Monitor” website.
It also cancels five other executive orders that were the basis for the penal program.
It directs the competent American agencies to take action regarding exemptions, export controls, and other restrictions related to Syria.
In parallel, the penalties imposed on former President Bashar al -Assad and those close to him and the persons involved in human rights, terrorism, weapons or smuggling of Captagon remain valid.
The decision does not cancel the classification of Syria as a “sponsoring terrorist state”, which was imposed in 1979, which includes restrictions on American aid and preventing the export of weapons. An American administration official said this classification is still under review.
The Caesar Law for the Protection of Syrian Civilians is still in effect, a law that imposed widespread financial penalties for isolating the Assad regime.
However, the Trump administration granted last month an exemption for a period of six months of the Caesar Law, in addition to a public license that allows for previously banned transactions, including dealing with the Syrian Central Bank and other governmental institutions.
Members of the two parties in Congress submitted a bill to cancel the Caesar Law, and its cancellation is likely to be included in an amendment to the American National Defense Defense Act at the end of the year, according to a assistant in Congress.
