Damascus The Minister of Economy in the Syrian caretaker government, Basil Abdel Hanan, said that the easing of sanctions recently announced by America is expected to contribute to facilitating the flow of basic goods and services into the country, especially in the energy sector, while opening the way for limited financial transactions.
The minister added that, despite this, the impact of the American step will remain limited due to the temporary nature of the license, demanding a complete lifting of the sanctions imposed on Syria, which were originally imposed on the ousted Bashar al-Assad regime, but the reason for their imposition was denied.
Last Monday, the US Treasury Department announced that it had issued a new general license to expand the permitted activities and transactions with Syria.
The license included allowing the transfer of personal funds to Syria, including through the Central Bank of Syria, in a step aimed at facilitating financial operations related to individuals and institutions.
US officials noted that the US administration approved the Treasury Department to issue exemptions to relief groups and companies that provide basic services to the country such as water, electricity and other humanitarian supplies.
Slight improvement
Regarding the impact of this license on the performance of the Syrian pound and the exchange rate, Minister Abdel Hanan said that easing sanctions may lead to a slight improvement in the value of the Syrian pound as a result of increased financial flows and increased confidence in the local economy. However, due to the limited scope of the exemption and its temporary nature, the positive impact on the exchange rate will also be limited.
The minister pointed out that the license could lead to improving the infrastructure and pave the way for the start of some reconstruction projects, but the impact will remain limited due to the short period of time for the license, stressing “the necessity of lifting all sanctions to achieve real economic recovery in the country.”
Abdel Hanan considered that the temporary license from the US Treasury cannot be a radical solution to the Syrian crisis, “as the imposed sanctions remain a major obstacle to achieving comprehensive economic recovery and rebuilding the country.”
The minister stressed that “with the demise of the Assad regime, which was the main reason for imposing these sanctions and for the destruction of Syria and the impoverishment of its people, it has become necessary to lift the sanctions completely to give the Syrians a real opportunity to rebuild their homeland and achieve stability and development. The continuation of these sanctions, despite the change in circumstances, “It keeps the Syrian people suffering and hinders the reconstruction efforts that Syria’s future needs.”
Positives of the decision
Syrian economic expert Samir Saifan believes that the decision issued by the US Treasury Department to partially lift sanctions on Syria for six months is positive and gives Syria space to:
- Benefiting from aid funds provided by any party, especially aid from Gulf Cooperation Council countries.
- Providing many goods and merchandise that were not previously allowed to be imported.
- The performance of the Syrian pound improved and the dollar flowed more into the Syrian market, which means a kind of recovery and an improvement in the exchange rate of the lira.
For his part, Karam Al-Shaar, a researcher in Syrian economic and political affairs, agrees with Seifan about the positives of the decision, stressing that this partial lifting of sanctions helps stabilize the exchange rate, which – according to Al-Shaar’s explanation to Al-Jazeera Net – is mainly heading toward stability. Because of the openness to Syria despite all the sanctions, considering that the exchange rate problem is on its way to being solved.
Al-Shaar pointed out that there is “another gain related to the possibility of supplying fuel and electricity to Syria from various neighboring countries, which was previously limited to Iran, which did not pay attention to the issue of sanctions.”
Reconstruction
While Al-Shaar believes that this decision will not change the lack of openness to Syria in the field of investment or reconstruction; It is considered an early stage from the American point of view, for two reasons:
Firstly, there are insufficient signals from the current administration in Damascus.
Secondly, and most importantly; Because the administration in America will change soon, and therefore a set of decisions will not be taken that make it seem as if President Joe Biden’s administration is anticipating its exit from the White House, so they are currently taking careful steps so that major decisions remain subject to the next administration.
This is what Seifan believes, considering that the current decision will not affect the actual reconstruction. Because it is a long-term process, taking at least a decade.
Saifan added to Al Jazeera Net that there is a lot of work, whether related to infrastructure, physical reconstruction, community reconstruction, etc. Nothing significant can be accomplished within a period of six months.
For his part, Karam Al-Shaar believes that “the worst thing about the Treasury Ministry’s decision is the point related to the fact that it is not allowed to make transfers to the Syrian state from Russia and Iran, even though most Syrians agree with this point, and agree that these two countries had a major role in destroying Syria.” However, this decision must be Syrian, and not issued by an announcement by the US Treasury Department.”
The future of sanctions
Regarding the future of the US sanctions imposed on Syria, Al-Shaar believes that it is an issue related to the administration of the next US President, Donald Trump. Upon her arrival to the White House, it is expected that she will be more strict in her directions and relations with the caretaker government in Damascus.
While Saifan considered that the US Treasury’s announcement is not a prelude to a complete lifting of sanctions, he explained this by recalling the Biden administration’s decision to freeze sanctions on Syria for humanitarian reasons in 2022 following the earthquake incident, which was activated again after the end of the freeze period.
Saifan stressed that the American side does not yet show signs of completely lifting the sanctions, as its position is still strict.
He considered that lifting the sanctions is a crucial issue for Syria, as if they remain, the country will face difficult circumstances again on several levels, including:
- Inability to make any financial transfers through official institutions.
- Difficulty importing many goods and merchandise.
- Loss of foreign investments that could revive the country economically.
The Syrian caretaker government called, on several occasions, for the lifting of sanctions so that it could revive and rebuild the exhausted country, stressing that the reasons for imposing them were eliminated with the fall of the regime of ousted President Bashar al-Assad.
