The European Union announced on Tuesday it would begin lifting sanctions on Syria to help its people build an "inclusive and peaceful" country.
The EU's 27 foreign ministers agreed to lift "economic sanctions" at a meeting in Brussels, the bloc's foreign affairs minister Kaja Kallas said. Their decision came a week after US President Donald Trump announced he was giving Syria a sanction-free "fresh start" under its interim President Ahmad Al Shara.
The decision to lift economic sanctions – many of which were suspended in February – leaves in place those imposed on former Bashar Al Assad regime officials, and others suspected of human rights crimes.
EU members have said the new Syrian regime must respect the rights of the country's minorities – amid outbreaks of sectarian violence – and prevent a resurgence of terrorism. However, there is also interest in restoring relations with Damascus, with a view to returning some of the hundreds of thousands of refugees living in Europe.
"This decision is reversible and also conditional on progress," Ms Kallas said. "There can be no peace without the path to economic recovery and we all need a stable Syria. Is everything really ideal there? No, it is not. But ... we need to give the Syrian people a chance."
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said the "first step" in lifting restrictions would include easing sanctions on Syria's Central Bank.
"The European Union wants to take a chance on a new start with Syria. We want to give the new leadership a real chance," Mr Wadephul said. "Therefore, as a first step we will lift and relax sanctions that essentially concern the Syrian Central Bank. I will push for us to continue on this path."
Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said military sanctions should not yet be lifted, while her Dutch counterpart Caspar Veldkamp warned that the lifting of sanctions "is reversible".
But offering an economic perspective to Syria is the only way to achieve reconstruction and "thereby also tackle the root causes of migration", Ms Meinl-Reisinger said.
An ambassador from a European country said the decision had been agreed on earlier before being ratified at the meeting of foreign ministers.
“Everyone now agrees that Syria must be given a chance at stabilisation and then hopefully a move towards pluralisation,” a senior EU official said.
Mr Trump announced the lifting of US sanctions a day before meeting Mr Al Shara in Riyadh. He indicated he had been asked to do so by Saudi Arabia and Turkey.
At a press conference in Damascus alongside his Jordanian counterpart on Tuesday, Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shaibani said "lifting sanctions expresses the regional and international will to support Syria" and "the Syrian people today have a very important and historic opportunity to rebuild their country".
Mr Al Shaibani said the American “U-turn” has been a factor in the EU's anticipated decision and the lifting of US and EU sanctions will give Syria the chance to become a “normal country”.
“We would be looking at an Iraq or a Libya scenario if salaries continued to be unpaid and the countries who want to help Syria cannot,” added the official, who said the move would be seen by Europeans as a “down-payment” in return for a pledge to pursue a democratisation process.
Another senior diplomatic source told The National the EU will maintain some individual sanctions imposed mainly against former Mr Al Assad and his confidants.
The source said the EU will also impose sanctions on at least some groups or people suspected of being involved in the killing of hundreds of Alawite community members in March.
Mr Al Shara was appointed President in January, a month after forces led by Hayat Tahrir Al Sham ousted Mr Al Assad, whose family had ruled Syria for five decades.
Celebrations erupted in Damascus last week after Mr Trump's announcement in Riyadh. Drivers honked horns and placards of Mr Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman were hoisted high, as Syrians poured on to the streets.
The sanctions have presented a significant challenge to the country's new leaders in rebuilding the country. The new regime won some relief last week when the World Bank confirmed Syria's $15.5 million debts to the organisation had been cleared.
Qatar and Saudi Arabia agreed to pay Syria's arrears. The deal with the World Bank means the country is now eligible for new funding.
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Asia Cup Qualifier
Final
UAE v Hong Kong
TV:
Live on OSN Cricket HD. Coverage starts at 5.30am
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
more from Janine di Giovanni
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
The%20specs
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KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Trailblazer
Price, base / as tested Dh99,000 / Dh132,000
Engine 3.6L V6
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power 275hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 3,700rpm
Fuel economy combined 12.2L / 100km
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The 10 Questions
- Is there a God?
- How did it all begin?
- What is inside a black hole?
- Can we predict the future?
- Is time travel possible?
- Will we survive on Earth?
- Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
- Should we colonise space?
- Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
- How do we shape the future?
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MATCH INFO
Champions League last 16, first leg
Tottenham v RB Leipzig, Wednesday, midnight (UAE)
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
UAE%20v%20West%20Indies
%3Cp%3EFirst%20ODI%20-%20Sunday%2C%20June%204%20%0D%3Cbr%3ESecond%20ODI%20-%20Tuesday%2C%20June%206%20%0D%3Cbr%3EThird%20ODI%20-%20Friday%2C%20June%209%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EMatches%20at%20Sharjah%20Cricket%20Stadium.%20All%20games%20start%20at%204.30pm%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMuhammad%20Waseem%20(captain)%2C%20Aayan%20Khan%2C%20Adithya%20Shetty%2C%20Ali%20Naseer%2C%20Ansh%20Tandon%2C%20Aryansh%20Sharma%2C%20Asif%20Khan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Ethan%20D%E2%80%99Souza%2C%20Fahad%20Nawaz%2C%20Jonathan%20Figy%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Lovepreet%20Singh%2C%20Matiullah%2C%20Mohammed%20Faraazuddin%2C%20Muhammad%20Jawadullah%2C%20Rameez%20Shahzad%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Sanchit%20Sharma%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The team
Photographer: Mateusz Stefanowski at Art Factory
Videographer: Jear Valasquez
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory
Model: Randa at Art Factory Videographer’s assistant: Zanong Magat
Photographer’s assistant: Sophia Shlykova
With thanks to Jubail Mangrove Park, Jubail Island, Abu Dhabi
Sri Lanka-India Test series schedule
1st Test July 26-30 in Galle
2nd Test August 3-7 in Colombo
3rd Test August 12-16 in Pallekele
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
TCL INFO
Teams:
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
More on Quran memorisation:
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
Book%20Details
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
