Economy

UK lifts sanctions on Syrian central bank and oil companies

By Reuters

March 7, 2025, 3:29 PM

Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa disembarks an airplane. He has repeatedly called for the lifting of sanctions — Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa has repeatedly called for the lifting of sanctions

Post-Assad reversals
Syria welcomes move
Step to economic recovery

The UK unfroze the assets of Syria’s central bank and 23 other entities, including banks and oil companies, on Thursday, reversing sanctions imposed during Bashar al-Assad’s presidency.

The West is rethinking its approach to Syria after insurgent forces led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham ousted Assad as president in December after more than 13 years of civil war.

“We are lifting asset freezes on 24 Syrian entities that were previously used by the Assad regime to fund the oppression of the Syrian people,” a foreign office spokesperson said.

“At the same time, sanctions on members of the Assad regime and those involved in the illicit trade in captagon remain in place.”

Captagon is an addictive amphetamine-like stimulant widely produced in Syria during Assad’s rule.

A notice posted on the British government website said entities including the central bank, the Commercial Bank of Syria and the Agricultural Cooperative Bank had been delisted and were no longer subject to an asset freeze.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry said it welcomed the UK’s decision, describing it as a “positive” step that contributes to the country’s economic recovery.

Markennamen: "Syrian Arab Airlines", Frankfurt am Main — Syrian Arab Airlines is among the entities whose assets were unfrozen by the United Kingdom, after the reversal of sanctions previously imposed during the Assad regime

Syria looks forward to taking more positive steps towards lifting the sanctions, the country’s foreign ministry added.

Syrian Arab Airlines, Syrian Petroleum Company, Syria Trading Oil Company and Overseas Petroleum Trading were also among those delisted.

Syria’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has called repeatedly for the lifting of Western sanctions that were imposed to isolate Assad during the civil war.

Last month, the European Union eased restrictions on the Syrian central bank while keeping in place the sanctions. The US has said its sanctions on the central bank remained in place.