On Monday, the 24th of February, the EU lifted a number of economic sanctions imposed on Syria after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime at the end of last year, reports Politico.
“We will continue to lift sanctions against Syria,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said ahead of a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels. “This also applies to the transport, energy and banking sectors.”
The lifting of sanctions aims to support “an inclusive political transition in Syria and its rapid economic recovery, reconstruction and stabilisation”, the EU Council’s official statement said.
The EU had previously agreed to gradually ease the sanctions it imposed on the country over the Assad government’s violent crackdown on protesters in 2011, which led to a civil war that killed hundreds of thousands of people.
Assad, who ruled Syria for almost a quarter of a century, fled to Russia after opposition forces took over the country and invaded the Syrian capital in December. The country is now led by the new President, Ahmed al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammad al-Jolani.
The EU still lists al-Sharaa’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham as a terrorist organisation, while European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned in December that regime change in Syria “offers opportunities but is not without risks”.