Economic sanctions on Syria... What are they and how does Trump's latest announcement affect them?

Analysts continue to analyze the consequences of Trump's announcement that he will lift sanctions on Syria. What can Syrians expect after the lifting of sanctions, and how will this reflect on the recovery of the Syrian economy?

Decades of sanctions

US sanctions on Damascus date back to 1979, when Washington issued a list of what it described as "countries supporting terrorism" and included Syria because of its support for Palestinian factions and its interference in Lebanon, according to the BBC.

Matters were further complicated when Bashar al-Assad succeeded his father as president in 2000. In May 2004, the "Syria Accountability and Restoration of Lebanese Sovereignty Act" went into effect, months after the administration of then US President George W. Bush approved it.

The law imposed restrictions on the export of US goods to Syria, with the exception of food and medicine, prohibited Syrian airlines from flying to the United States, and expanded sanctions against a number of Syrian officials. However, the law exempted the import of goods from Syria, including petroleum products, banking transactions, and US investments in Syria.

In 2005, following the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, the United States withdrew its ambassador to Damascus, Margaret Scobey. Later, Bush issued executive orders barring 20 Syrian citizens and specific Syrian companies from accessing the US financial system.

Under the Patriot Act, economic sanctions were expanded in 2006, directly targeting the Commercial Bank of Syria.

More impactful sanctions after Syrian crisis

After the start of the Syrian crisis, US sanctions expanded. There was Executive Order 13572 issued in April 2011, which prohibited the property of Syrian officials and others responsible for committing human rights violations. In May 2011, the US government took additional steps through Executive Order 13573, which prohibited the property of additional Syrian officials, including then-President Bashar al-Assad and anyone determined to be a senior official of the Syrian government.

In August 2011, then US President Barack Obama issued Executive Order 13582, which blocks Syrian government property, grants additional powers to designate individuals and entities, and prohibits Americans from making new investments in Syria.

The order also prohibits the export or sale of services to Syria by Americans, prohibits the import of oil or petroleum products of Syrian origin, and prohibits Americans from engaging in transactions related to Syrian oil or petroleum products, depriving Damascus of an essential resource.

In 2013, the United States complied with International Working Group on Syria resolutions such as refraining from purchasing Syrian phosphate and ceasing to provide surveillance technologies that could be used by the Assad regime to restrict the free flow of information and communications inside and outside of Syria.

The "Protection of Syrian Civilians Act of 2019" is known as the "Caesar" law, after the code name taken by a Syrian military photographer who defected from the regime and shared photos showing the bodies of thousands of people who died under torture in Syria.

Finally, the "Captagon Act" was passed by the US Congress in two phases, the first part of which expires in December 2022 and the second in April 2024. The law focuses specifically on combating the drug trade on which the Assad regime relied as a major source of funding, targeting Captagon production and smuggling networks in which prominent regime figures were involved.

Expected effects

It is certain that this step by US President Donald Trump is an important and pivotal stage for the Syrian economy, and the Syrian pound recorded a remarkable improvement against the US dollar on the parallel market following the announcement of the decision, rising by about 10 percent and trading at 8300 pounds for buying and 8700 pounds for selling, according to local platforms that follow the currency market.

However, this US move requires similar European steps to be followed in order to achieve the main goal of lifting sanctions, which is the entry of investment entities into the country, and many US sanctions require congressional approval.

For his part, Anwar al-Qasim, an economic analyst at the Financial Times, believes that the Syrian economy needs a miracle to recover, which requires a complete lifting of the sanctions imposed on the country, most importantly the US sanctions on financial transfers, the international economic blockade and the boycott by wealthy countries, while al-Qasim believes that corruption and weak institutions are among the biggest challenges facing the efforts of reconstruction projects after the lifting of sanctions on Syria. 

Sh-S

ANHA