LONDON: The United Kingdom on Friday lifted sanctions on Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa, following a United Nations Security Council decision the previous day, ahead of his scheduled meeting with US President Donald Trump next week.
The European Union also confirmed it would align its measures accordingly.
In a notice on the government website, Britain stated that sanctions on Syria’s Interior Minister Anas Khattab were also being removed. Both officials had previously been subject to financial sanctions targeting Daesh and Al-Qaeda.
While Britain eased some sanctions on Syria in April and the EU lifted its economic sanctions in May, restrictions related to arms and security remain in place.
“We remain committed to supporting a peaceful and inclusive Syrian-led and Syrian-owned transition to help build a better future for all Syrians,” a European Commission spokesperson said.
US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said that President Ahmed Al-Sharaa was expected to travel to Washington “hopefully” to sign an agreement formalising Syria’s participation in the US-led international alliance against Daesh.
Syria’s top diplomat, Asaad Al-Shaibani, speaking during a panel session at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain, said that President Ahmed Al-Sharaa will discuss key issues such as the lifting of remaining sanctions, postwar reconstruction, and counter-terrorism during his upcoming official visit to Washington.
Although this will be Sharaa’s first official visit to Washington, it will be his second trip to the United States following a landmark appearance at the UN General Assembly in New York in September, where the former jihadist became the first Syrian president in decades to address the forum.
In May, the interim leader, whose Islamist forces overthrew longtime ruler Bashar Assad late last year, held his first meeting with US President Donald Trump in Riyadh — a historic encounter during which the US president pledged to lift economic sanctions on Syria.
