Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al Shaibani has said the complete removal of US Caesar Act sanctions is now “a matter of time.”
Speaking during a panel discussion at Chatham House in London on Thursday, al Shaibani said Damascus believes it has shifted global perceptions over the past year.
“In 11 months, we changed the world’s view of Syria and removed the fears that once existed,” he said.
Syria is “exhausted and in a transitional phase,” the minister said, adding that the country needs time to “express itself” after years of conflict.
Al Shaibani said the government’s goal is for Syria to become “a state its people believe in, and not one distant from them.”
‘Our commitment’
Earlier, the US partially suspended the imposition of Caesar Act sanctions on Syria for 180 days, the Treasury Department announced on Monday.
The suspension replaces a May 23 waiver, which also granted a 180-day exemption from mandatory Caesar Act sanctions, and represents "our commitment to continued sanctions relief for Syria," according to an advisory from the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
The 2019 Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act has been a central element of US policy pressuring the former Syrian regime of Assad, which was ousted last December, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963.
The sanctions block international investments and economic transactions involving the Syrian government and its affiliates.
The move coincided with Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa's history-making visit to Washington.
