The European Union is set to suspend sanctions on Syria’s banking system, energy, and transport sectors next week to support the country’s reconstruction following the removal of Bashar al-Assad from power, diplomats have confirmed.
Syria’s new rulers have urged Western nations to ease sanctions imposed on Assad’s regime during the civil war. However, European and other global powers have been hesitant, awaiting clear signals from the new Islamist leadership in Damascus on their commitment to an inclusive transition.
The move, expected to be approved during the upcoming EU Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Brussels, follows an agreement last month to suspend key sanctions. Diplomats warned that the restrictions could be reinstated if Syria’s new leadership fails to uphold minority rights and democratic reforms.
The United Nations recently reported that, at the current rate of economic recovery, Syria could take over 50 years to return to its pre-war economic levels. Years of international isolation and Assad’s brutal crackdown on opposition forces in 2011 devastated the country’s infrastructure and economy.
With Assad’s departure, the EU and other global players are seeking to influence Syria’s future, a nation previously backed by Russia and Iran.
