The European Union can ease the sanctions imposed on Syria, but it will require that there be a political transition capable of reflecting “the entire diversity of the country”, said the bloc’s high representative for foreign affairs, Kaja Kallas.
“Today, in Riyadh, I will meet with foreign ministers from the countries of the (Persian Gulf), the Middle East and Europe about the transition since the fall of the (Bashar al) Assad regime,” she said in a post on X, highlighting that Syrian Foreign Minister Hassan al-Shibani will also participate in the meeting. “We will evaluate how to ease the sanctions,” he added.
The European Union suspended all bilateral cooperation with Syria in May 2011, in response to human rights violations committed by the Assad government in operations to repress anti-regime protesters.
Economic sanctions came later, and include bans on the import of oil and derivatives produced in Syria, the sale of products that can be used or transformed into weapons of repression against the population and the imposition of barriers to investments.
Late last year, however, Assad’s government was overthrown by forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. The group began as an offshoot of al Qaeda, although it later severed those ties, and has repeatedly stated that it would treat all Syrians equally. There are fears, however, that it could renege on these promises, once international approval for the new regime has been secured.
