Does the British license revive the humanitarian activities of Syria? | Economy news

Al -Jazeera Net Correspondents

Damascus – The Office for the Implementation of the Financial Penalties (OSI) issued an Office of the British Treasury a few days ago a license aimed at facilitating humanitarian activities in Syria, and securing the access of aid to the most destructive segments, despite the economic sanctions imposed on the country.

According to the text of the license, this step is part of international efforts to ensure that relief operations in Syria are not affected by the sanctions imposed on them, and to provide facilities for United Nations agencies and NGOs to work in Syria, provided that they do not cooperate with the parties listed on the British sanctions list.

The United Kingdom has imposed strict economic sanctions on the regime of ousted President Bashar al -Assad and its financial institutions during the war years in Syria, with the aim of restricting his government from reaching economic resources and international financing to pressure him in order to reach a political settlement of the conflict.

Licensing items

The provisions of licensing stipulate that the relief and humanitarian agencies are allowed to contribute to meeting the basic needs of Syrians of food, health services and relief in emergency situations, and to provide financial aid directly to the most needy groups, as well as facilitate the delivery of aid to the affected areas.

The license specified a list of authorized authorities accordingly in Syria, namely the United Nations, its specialized agencies, and their fund programs, internationally recognized NGOs, international organizations supervising relief programs in Syria, the authorities funded by the British government to provide assistance, executing partners and employees in each of these institutions .

The license allowed these bodies to transfer and receive funds through official channels for the purpose of buying goods and securing the necessary services to implement humanitarian projects, and paying the dues of relief workers.

However, the license stressed the need not to approach funds or economic resources subject to the control of individuals or institutions listed in the sanctions list, and obliged the authorities to submit a written notice to the British Treasury Ministry 30 days before the start of any activity.

The license specified the financial institutions that were excluded from the sanctions list to facilitate humanitarian activities, namely:

• Agricultural cooperative bank
• Syria Central Bank
• The Syrian Commercial Bank
• Industrial Bank
• Popular Credit Bank
• Syrian real estate bank
• Savings Bank
• The Syrian -Lebanese Commercial Bank

The British Treasury affirmed its right to amend, cancel or suspend the license at any time, if it becomes clear that there are violations or exploitation of it outside the scope of human purposes.

Limited effect

Economic experts and researchers unanimously agreed that the license represents a positive step in the context of contributing to supporting activities and businesses of the country, and that it contributes to alleviating bureaucratic obstacles and facilitating the access of food and health assistance to individuals.

The Syrian economist and professor of economics at the University of Aleppo, Firas Shaabu, pointed out that despite the humanitarian nature of the license, it allows the entry of transfers in foreign currencies to Syrian banks, which Shaabu sees “very well because it contributes to the rotation of the currency in the official corridors of the Syrian banking system mainly “.

For his part, Syrian economist Ayman Abdel Nour, in an interview with Al -Jazeera Net, states that the impact of the license on the economy will be limited because it is temporary, and there is a clear clause that allows it to be withdrawn, canceled or modified. Thus, “the investor who is considering an investment will not be able to activate his investment project in Syria.”

Abdel Nour believes that the British license is similar to all American and European temporary measures that will not lead to the solutions required for the Syrian economy, because it does not include sectors such as energy and the Swift system for bank transfers.

The Syrian economist and researcher at the London College of Economics, Zaki, approved the opinion of Abdel Nour that the license does not provide solutions to the Syrian economy as long as it does not stipulate a complete lifting of the sanctions.

The expert adds in an interview with Al -Jazeera Net: With the non -lifting of the sanctions, there will remain the problem of “excessive compliance” by international financial institutions in dealing with Syria, meaning that most British banks and institutions even after the license will not turn the money to Syria, because they cannot tolerate the risk in light of the sanctions.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mx_ynzQGEC

Restructuring the sanctions

And about the indications that can be read in this license, Mohsheh believes that it is an introduction to restructuring the sanctions against Syria and lifting some of them, citing the statements of the British Foreign Ministry, Stephen Dowti, a few days ago, that his country will work to reform the sanctions system imposed on Syria after the fall of Assad and the direction To raise some of them, especially those related to the power and transportation sectors.

As for Ayman Abdel Nour, he sees in the license a message about the Western desire to cooperate with the new government, the condition of integration in the international community according to its requirements from “protection for individual freedoms in the country, ensuring Israel’s security, the absence of chemical weapons, the destruction of ballistic missiles, and the lack of military bases for Iran and Russia, The election of a government that includes all components of the Syrian people, “and these are the various issues that the West wants to ensure that it is achieved to move to the next stage in dealing with Syria, according to Abdel Nour.

It is noteworthy that the European Union and the United States had reduced their sanctions on Syria, which opened the way for transactions with government institutions and energy transactions, and allowed the transfer of personal funds to the country, including through the Central Bank of Syria.