Brussels– The European Union is weighing a new round of sanctions relief for Syria, as part of a proposal led by four member states aimed at expanding engagement with the war-torn country, according to a document seen by Reuters.
The draft, prepared by Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Austria, recommends a partial rollback of economic restrictions targeting the Syrian government. It comes ahead of the bloc’s annual review of sanctions policy, scheduled for June 1.
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EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has reportedly backed the proposal, which seeks to allow limited financial support for Syria’s transitional government, particularly in areas related to reconstruction, migration management, capacity-building, and counterterrorism.
A key element of the proposal involves lifting sanctions on Syria’s state-owned Commercial Bank, while maintaining restrictions on individuals and entities linked to the former President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Discussions may also include the potential easing of measures on Syria’s central bank and other financial institutions, according to three European diplomats cited by Reuters.
The European countries behind the draft said the goal of easing sanctions on Syria is to create additional space for social and economic recovery.
On February 24, the EU suspended a range of sanctions targeting key sectors of the Syrian economy. As part of that move, five entities were removed from the bloc’s asset freeze list: the Industrial Bank, Popular Credit Bank, Savings Bank, Agricultural Cooperative Bank, and Syrian Arab Airlines.
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The EU also lifted restrictive measures in the energy and transport sectors, including oil, gas, electricity, and logistics, and allowed affected entities to place funds and economic resources at the disposal of the Syrian central bank.
The current EU sanctions are outlined in Council Decision 2013/255/CFSP and Council Regulation (EU) No 36/2012. They were first imposed in 2011 in response to the Assad government’s violent crackdown on pro-democracy protests.
