Trump admin moves to ease Syria sanctions

KABUL (Pajhwok): In line with President Donald Trump’s promise, the United States has started easing sanctions on Syria, CNN reported.

Earlier in the month, Trump had pledged to lift the measures during a visit to the Middle East, where he also had a meeting with the Syrian president.

Following the ouster of Bashar al-Assad, the Trump administration had been working for months on sanctions relief for the impoverished war-battered nation.

In a statement on Friday, the US Treasury Department said Syria had been issued a general licence that alowed transactions involving the interim Syrian government, as well as the central bank and state-owned enterprises.

The GL25 licence will pave the ground for new investment and private sector activity consistent with the president’s “America First strategy”.

At the same time, the State Department issued a 180-day waiver under the Caesar Act to ensure sanctions do not impede investment and advance Syria’s recovery and reconstruction efforts/

Secretary of State Marco Rubio hoped the waivers would facilitate the provision of electricity, energy, water, and sanitation and enable a more effective humanitarian response across Syria.

Rubio commented:“Today’s actions represent the first step in delivering on the President’s vision of a new relationship between Syria and the United States.”

He added: “If we make enough progress, we’d like to see the law repealed, because you’re going to struggle to find people to invest in a country when any in six months, sanctions could come back. We’re not there yet. That’s premature.”

PAN Monitor/mud