UK Lifts Freeze on Syrian Central Bank Assets... Signal of Support for Transitional Government?

UK Lifts Asset Freeze on Syrian Central Bank
EU and US Remain Cautious

The UK government has lifted some of the sanctions it had imposed on Syria during the Bashar al-Assad regime. This move is interpreted as a cautious response by Western countries, observing the political changes in Syria following the recent overthrow of the al-Assad regime by rebel forces and the end of the civil war.

Central Bank of Syria. Photo by AFP/ Yonhap

According to AFP and Reuters on the 7th (local time), the UK government removed 24 companies in the finance, energy, and transportation sectors from its sanctions list announced the previous day. The list included the Central Bank of Syria, Agricultural Cooperative Bank, Commercial Bank of Syria, Syrian Arab Airlines, General Petroleum Corporation (GPC), and Syrian Petroleum Trading Company (SYTROL).

This measure follows the request from the newly established Syrian transitional government after the rebel coalition Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) toppled the al-Assad regime and ended the 13-year civil war last December. The transitional government requested the West to lift sanctions, and Western countries are cautiously responding on the condition of reforms and inclusive governance.

The UK government stated, “This is a measure to support a Syrian-led political transition process and to help the Syrian people rebuild the state and economy,” adding, “We will continue to monitor whether the transitional government implements substantive reforms.”

The Financial Times (FT) reported that the UK is the first Western country to fully lift asset freezes on the Central Bank of Syria. However, about 50 Syrian companies and over 300 individuals remain on the UK government’s sanctions list.

Last month, the European Union (EU) also partially suspended sanctions on the Central Bank of Syria and others to aid Syria’s reconstruction, but the United States still maintains sanctions on key entities, including the Central Bank of Syria.

Experts predict that as long as the US continues its tough sanctions policy, the impact of the UK and EU’s measures on the Syrian economy will be limited.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the UK’s decision, describing it as “a positive step to provide urgent relief to the Syrian people and assist in the recovery of the national economy and politics.”