Syria Seeks Sanction Relief Amid U.S. Political Maneuvering—What's Going On?

Many countries, including European ones, believe that Syria has a chance to recover from the security and economic collapse left by Bashar al-Assad's regime after its fall. 

The U.S. sanctions remain the biggest obstacle to seeing a recovery in the transitional period and improving the livelihoods of Syrians.

Weapon of Sanctions

The United States continues to wield the “weapon of sanctions,” directing it at Syria's new leadership to “monitor their behavior” in managing the country. Meanwhile, prominent voices in Washington criticize this approach toward Damascus at this critical stage in Syria's history.

U.S. lawmakers Elizabeth Warren (Democrat) and Joe Wilson (Republican) have called on Congress, the State Department, and the Treasury Department to ease the sanctions on Syria, warning that their continuation hinders reconstruction efforts and threatens regional stability.

In a joint letter sent on March 21, 2025, to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bissent, the lawmakers explained that the broad sanctions imposed for over a decade target a regime that no longer exists, undermining U.S. national security goals and impeding reconstruction efforts, according to SANA.

The lawmakers urged a review of sanctions and the replacement of outdated measures, including the blanket ban on services and investments. They pointed out that current sanctions could lead to new waves of migration and increase Syrians' reliance on illegal networks.

The letter emphasized that prolonged economic restrictions could allow Iran and Russia to expand their influence in Syria, urging the State and Treasury Departments to provide a clear roadmap for easing sanctions beyond short-term adjustments.

The lawmakers stressed the need for swift action to prevent harm to U.S. interests, adding that easing some sanctions could help improve the living conditions of Syrians after years of hardship.

Earlier, Congressman Joe Wilson stated that it was time for the U.S. to follow the example of the British government in easing sanctions on Syria. In a February 2025 post on X, Wilson expressed gratitude to the British government for their decision and called for the U.S. to take similar steps to help Syrians return to their homes and rebuild the country.

$530 Billion

U.S. sanctions on Syria date back to the era of Hafez al-Assad, when they were first imposed in December 1979. The second phase of U.S. punitive measures began in 2003 under the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act.

After the Syrian revolution erupted on March 18, 2011, Washington imposed sanctions on investments in Syria, imports from the country, government and private sector funding, as well as restrictions on the movement of Syrian citizens into the United States.

In 2020, the U.S. enacted the Caesar Act, a law designed to protect civilians in Syria, which imposed sanctions on the ousted Assad regime and any nations cooperating with it across various sectors.

The Caesar Act targeted those facilitating Assad’s access to goods, services, or technologies supporting the regime’s military activities, as well as its industries in aviation, oil, gas production, and construction.

The law also imposed sanctions on Syrian intelligence agencies, the central bank, and entities supporting Assad’s government in four sectors: oil, natural gas, aircraft, and construction.

The law targeted any entity providing aircraft or spare parts for Syrian airlines or engaging in construction projects controlled by the former Syrian government, or supporting Syria's energy industry.

A study by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, published in late May 2020, estimated that Syria's economic losses due to the Caesar Act between 2011 and 2020 amounted to approximately $530 billion, which is 9.7 times the country's GDP in 2010.

Repeated calls have been made in Syria to lift the Caesar Act, which prevents new investments and trade with Syrian companies at this stage, particularly from Syrian businesspeople eager to help their country recover.

“Keeping U.S. sanctions in place would cripple Syria’s economic sectors, leaving little room for financial investment,” Syrian academic Maarouf al-Khalaf told Al-Estiklal.

“The harshness of the sanctions lies in their focus on Syria's central bank, which is the lifeblood of the country's financial movement, essential for activating economic activity.”

Al-Khalaf also emphasized that U.S. sanctions directly affect Syrians’ basic living requirements.

“Lifting the U.S. sanctions is tied to the current transitional process and the economic reforms that will shape Syria's economic future,” he added.

“The U.S. would likely adopt a ‘gradual licensing’ approach, periodically issuing licenses to the Syrian government, requiring corresponding steps in return, allowing Washington to monitor Syria's political and economic reforms under the current leadership.”

The U.S. also imposes secondary sanctions on foreign governments, individuals, and non-U.S. entities that engage with the Syrian government or entities under sanctions.

Therefore, one of the primary demands from Damascus and many countries is the removal of the complex web of economic, financial, and trade sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Syria.

On March 17, 2025, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani addressed the Brussels-hosted donor conference for Syria, stressing the necessity of lifting sanctions for the country’s recovery.

“Today, we are here not to talk about humanitarian assistance, but we want to establish a true plan in order to achieve the goals, those of lifting the sanctions, to let us rebuild, to help Syrians rebuild their country free from the coercive and unilateral sanctions under which the Syrian people have suffered a great deal,” he said in a speech at a donor conference for Syria hosted by the EU in Brussels.

In January 2025, the U.S. granted short-term exemptions related to the provision of essential services in response to calls for easing sanctions on Syria.

However, this step is insufficient and does not match the urgency of the situation, as Washington continues to insist on pressuring Syria's leadership to broaden power-sharing.

Despite this, Syria's new authorities have announced plans for a political transition that includes all minorities and segments of Syrian society, along with greater cooperation with neighboring countries and other international actors, offering some reassurance to the global community.

Obstructing Recovery

In this context, Syrian researcher at the Omran Center for Strategic Studies, Ayman Aldassouky, stated that “the persistence of U.S. sanctions has compounded effects on Syria, particularly in the economic and developmental sectors; they hinder the financial flows necessary to revive the Syrian economy.”

“U.S. sanctions also limit the direct involvement of individuals and entities with the new administration to support efforts to rebuild and develop state institutions,” he told Al-Estiklal.

“The continuation of U.S. sanctions makes Syria an unattractive environment for foreign investment and diminishes the activities of the Syrian private sector.”

Politically, Aldassouky pointed out that “the persistence of U.S. sanctions on Syria will affect how other countries approach the new administration, regulate its actions, and weaken the momentum of steps and initiatives already taken in Syria, or those expected to be implemented.”

“The continued U.S. sanctions indicate that there are political and security conditions imposed on the new administration, requiring a negotiation path and concessions that it may not be able to meet, which would affect its stability and how Syrians view it.”

Reimagining Syria report, published by three research centers during a Middle East Institute conference in March 2025, urges giving the Syrian transitional process “a chance to recover.”

It advocates for lifting U.S. sanctions, arguing that engagement offers a more effective way to shape the scope and direction of change in Syria than continued isolation.

Experts also warn Washington not to push the new Syria into the arms of Russia by maintaining suffocating sanctions.

They said that as Washington determines its policy toward Syria, it is important to remember that preserving strategic gains and striving for an open, democratic Syria that does not belong to the Iranian axis and does not pose a threat to its neighbors is worth the effort.

The U.S. administration can take pride in the historic strategic gains achieved in Syria after the fall of the Assad regime: Iran was expelled, and Hezbollah lost its land supply route from Iran.

The Syrian state is also working on securing its borders with Lebanon and ending all forms of smuggling, especially the illegal drug trade from Syria to Washington’s allies that persisted during Assad’s time.