In a dramatic move, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the lifting of sanctions on Syria following his first-ever meeting with Syrian President al-Sharaa. The meeting was facilitated by Saudi officials on the sidelines of a regional conference between President Trump and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) leaders. It marked the first direct engagement between the U.S. and Syrian leadership in a quarter century, since President Bill Clinton met with Hafez al-Assad in 2000.
Following President Trump’s statement, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio formalized the decision with a 180-day waiver of the Caesar Act sanctions. “This waiver ensures that sanctions will not hinder the ability of our partners to invest in stability, or to contribute meaningfully to Syria’s reconstruction and humanitarian response,” Rubio said. “We aim to restore critical infrastructure—energy, water, and sanitation—and lay the groundwork for long-term recovery.”
The European Union, in a coordinated move, also announced the lifting of its own sanctions, citing the need to support Syria’s reconstruction and prevent further humanitarian deterioration.
Syria’s economy has been in freefall since the onset of its civil war, and the implementation of U.S. Caesar Act sanctions in 2020 only deepened the crisis. The sanctions isolated Syria from the global financial system, devastated its currency, and drove soaring rates of hunger, unemployment, and smuggling.
The recent announcements have triggered immediate economic response. The Syrian pound surged by 30% within 48 hours of Trump’s declaration, aided by a $7 billion energy infrastructure deal involving Qatari, Turkish, and U.S. companies announced by Tom Barrack, US Ambassador to Turkey. The agreement will focus on restoring Syria’s battered electricity grid, fuel supply chains, and refining capacity.
Rebuilding Syria will also require addressing deep structural divisions within the country. Approximately 70% of Syria’s oil and gas resources, along with a significant portion of its agricultural sector, lie in regions controlled by the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration. Discussions aimed at integrating these regions into national recovery efforts are already underway, following a landmark framework agreement signed between President al-Sharaa and General Commander Mazloum Abdi of the Syrian Democratic Forces.