Brussels
The European Union has linked any further easing of sanctions on Syria to the fulfilment of specific conditions by the country’s interim government, according to EU Foreign and Security Policy Kaja Kallas.
Speaking at a press conference following a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Monday, April 14, Kallas said the bloc “has not seen many steps from the new Syrian authorities which would warrant further sanctions relief.”
Kallas noted that EU foreign ministers had engaged in “an intensive debate on Syria.” with particular focus on the possibility of further easing restrictive measures. She stressed that any further steps would be “conditional on the fulfilment of several conditions by the new authorities in Damascus, “ though she did not specify what those conditions would entail.
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“The EU plans to prepare technical details on the requirements to lift the European restrictive measures imposed on Syria,” she added, acknowledging that while Syria’s future remains fragile, “it still holds some hope.”
The Ministers agreed to continue assessing the potential for additional sanctions relief, following an initial easing of some measures earlier this year. Kallas emphasized that the EU would “work to propose the next steps, taking into account the conditions and red lines we want to abide by.”
Kallas also underscored the importance of maintaining access to essential services in Syria, stating that “until Syria is reconstructed, there must be access to services.”
In late February, the European Union announced a partial easing of sanctions targeting Syria’s oil, electricity and gas sectors. The decision included the removal of five Syrian financial institutions from the bloc’s list of restricted entities: the Industrial Bank, the People’s Credit Bank, the Savings Bank, the Agricultural Cooperative Bank and Syrian Airlines.
The resolution also allowed for resources to be made available to the Central Bank of Syria and its associated financial and banking facilities, particularly for humanitarian purposes.
This move followed a January announcement by the EU’s top foreign policy official that foreign had agreed on a roadmap for gradually easing some of the bloc’s economic restrictions on Syria. The plan included the lifting of sanctions on air traffic, shipping, banking infrastructure, and the energy sector.
