GCC urge the lifting of sanctions on Syria

The US, the EU, Canada and other countries imposed severe sanctions against the regime of former president Bashar Al Assad

Gulf countries urged the lifting of international sanctions on Syria as the new administration in Damascus that replaced the former regime seeks to assert its authority. The call was issued at the end of an extraordinary meeting for the ministers of foreign affairs of the Gulf Co-operation Council in Kuwait to discuss recent developments in Syria and Lebanon.

The US, the EU, Canada and other countries imposed severe sanctions against the regime of former president Bashar Al Assad in response to his violent crackdown on protests from 2011 onwards and actions in the ensuing civil war. Some western sanctions date back even further, to when Mr Al Assad’s father Hafez was in power.

Countries are now considering when to lift restrictions after Hayat Tahrir Al Sham (HTS) led a rebel advance that ended decades of rule by the Assad family. Complicating the matter is HTS’s designation as a terror group by the US, UN and other entities.

«To empower Syria economically, the Ministerial Council called for lifting sanctions on it, and called on all partners, countries and concerned organisations to provide all means of support to the brotherly Syrian people,» the six Gulf countries said in a statement after the meeting.

The US has imposed sanctions on 718 people and entities in connection to Syria, and the State Department has hinted that it could use those measures to encourage what it considers to be good behaviour from HTS and whatever governing body is formed to lead Syria.

Last week, discussions to possibly lift EU sanctions against Syria were under way but are unlikely to resolve soon, Germany’s special envoy to Syria, Stefan Schneck, told The National.

Gulf ministers urged all parties in Syria to «launch a comprehensive national dialogue to achieve the aspirations of the brotherly Syrian people for security, stability, development, and prosperity».