U.S. Treasury announces sweeping sanctions relief for Syria

The U.S. administration of President Donald Trump on Friday issued a broad sanctions relief for Syria, saying the measure sought to encourage investment in the war-ravaged Middle Eastern country.  

The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued Syria General License (GL) 25 to provide "immediate sanctions relief," an official press release read. 

“As President Trump promised, the Treasury Department and the State Department are implementing authorizations to encourage new investment into Syria. Syria must also continue to work towards becoming a stable country that is at peace, and today’s actions will hopefully put the country on a path to a bright, prosperous, and stable future,” said Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. 

Damascus meanwhile announced it was rolling out various measures to attract foreign investment, said Finance Minister Mohammad Yasser Barniyah. 

"There is a great appetite we've seen to invest in Syria. There are great opportunities in all sectors, energy, agriculture, infrastructure, housing, tourism, healthcare, education, almost all sectors. Syria is rich of opportunities now. Of course, lifting the sanctions created a sort of optimism, and that is a precondition for attracting investment. What we are trying to do now is trying to transfer this optimism into reality by creating the right infrastructure, the right regulation and the right ecosystem that welcomes investors," the official said.

"We welcome all investors from all over the world, and we make sure they have the protection, and they have the requirement to support their investment. So Syria is opening up. Syria is welcoming all investors from all over the world and we encourage everybody to explore the opportunity to come to Syria. And we also welcome Asian investors."