US rolls back Assad-era sanctions on Syria

The United States granted immediate sanctions relief to Syria after President Donald Trump called for a complete end to sanctions on the country.

The sanctions relief was announced by the U.S. Treasury Department and State Department on May 23.

According to a statement released by the Treasury Department, the decision to roll back sanctions is "just one part of a broader U.S. government effort to remove the full architecture of sanctions imposed on Syria due to the abuses of the Bashar al-Assad regime."

The statement also notes that the sanctions relief "does not allow for transactions that benefit Russia, Iran, or North Korea—key supporters of the former Assad regime."

Additionally, according to a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the goal of the sanctions relief is to "advance Syria’s recovery and reconstruction efforts" and "facilitate the provision of electricity, energy, water, and sanitation, and enable a more effective humanitarian response across Syria."

Syria welcomed the Trump administration's decision to ease sanctions in a statement issued by its foreign ministry on May 24.

In the statement, the ministry called the decision a "positive step" toward relieving the country's humanitarian and economic suffering, and expressed Syria's willingness to cooperate with international partners.

Earlier this week, top European Union officials also announced sanctions relief for Syria, noting that the decision to lift sanctions is a critical step on "the path to economic recovery."

Following the ouster of dictator Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Syria's new leadership has sought to reverse the country's geopolitical isolation and years of crippling international sanctions after more than a decade of war.