What US sanctions on Syria remain as Shibani, Barrack hold talks?
Key sanctions remain on Damascus, including a designation that was made more than four decades ago.
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani and Tom Barrack, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy for Iraq and Syria, met in Istanbul on Monday to discuss the remaining US sanctions on the war-torn country and efforts to rebuild its economy.
According to a statement by Syria’s Foreign Ministry, the two officials reviewed the steps needed to lift the remaining sanctions and discussed reconstruction priorities and recent regional security developments.
The talks come as Syria seeks to reintegrate into the global financial system and attract foreign investment following the ouster of former President Bashar al-Assad in a militia offensive in December 2024. The 13-year civil war wiped at least $800 billion from the country’s GDP.
President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government has persuaded Western governments including the US to lift most sanctions imposed on Syria, though some restrictions remain in place.
Background: The United States first sanctioned Syria in 1979, when it designated the country a state sponsor of terrorism.
Further sanctions were added in May 2004 under the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act. Washington imposed those sanctions to punish Syria for supporting terrorism, pursuing weapons of mass destruction, occupying Lebanon and failing to block anti-US fighters from entering Iraq.
In 2011, the year Syria’s civil war began following a bloody government crackdown on Arab Spring protests, the US imposed additional sanctions, including measures freezing assets of Syrian officials and others held responsible for human rights abuses, among them President Bashar al-Assad. His government was accused of widespread abuses including torture and the use of chemical weapons against civilians.
Why it matters: In June 2025, Trump terminated the broad US sanctions program on Syria, effectively ending comprehensive Treasury sanctions on the country and dismantling much of the sanctions framework that had restricted its economy. That framework included restrictions imposed under the Caesar Act, which took effect in June 2020 and targeted the Syrian government as well as foreign entities doing business with it.
However, Syria remains designated a state sponsor of terrorism, a status that carries separate restrictions and has complicated the country’s reintegration into the global financial system. Trump moved to rescind the designation in July, but the statutory 45-day congressional review period is still underway.
The Sharaa government has sought to address US security concerns by stepping up operations against the Islamic State and cooperating with Washington on counterterrorism. Syria joined the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS in November 2025 and its authorities have raided ISIS cells, seized weapons and arrested suspected militants. Sharaa has also cracked down on Hezbollah’s long-established networks in Syria and distanced Damascus from Tehran.
Even if Syria is removed from the terrorism list, Washington will continue to sanction specific individuals and entities including former Assad regime figures and others targeted on terrorism and human rights grounds. Those measures include asset freezes and restrictions on transactions with designated parties.
Know more: Other countries outside the US have also been lifting sanctions on Syria. In May 2025, the European Union lifted most economic measures, including sanctions on banks, energy, transportation, investment activity and imports and exports. However, the bloc kept some sanctions on weapons, security technology and Assad regime individuals and entities. The EU's website says that 317 individuals and 51 entities are still sanctioned.
The United Kingdom removed a large amount of its sanctions on Syria last year, and the government is no longer designated under London’s sanctions regime. However, the UK retains asset freezes on designated individuals and entities, restrictions on chemical weapons and restrictions on internal repression goods and technology as well as on monitoring technology.
