Arab News | US removes Syria from arms export ban as Trump administration draws closer to new Syrian government

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration is removing Syria from a list of countries that are not allowed to purchase or import US weaponry, a step that is part of a months-long process of easing sanctions on the new government in Damascus and its leaders.

In a notice published Wednesday in the Federal Register, the State Department said it was amending its International Traffic in Arms Regulations, or ITAR, so that Syria no longer was among the nations subject to a policy of denial for licenses and other approvals needed for the sale of US weapons and munitions.

The change effective Thursday means that arms sales requests from Syria will now be considered on a case-by-case basis. 

President Donald Trump acted last year to ease economic sanctions on Syria that had been in place for decades during now-ousted President Bashar Assad’s rule. In August, Secretary of State Marco Rubio rescinded Syria’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, helping pave the way for the latest step in drawing closer to the current government.

The State Department has also announced plans to reopen the US Embassy in Damascus. It has been closed for 14 years. 

With Syria’s removal from the ITAR blacklist, only seven countries remain subject to the policy of denial for licenses for US arms exports: Belarus, China, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea and Venezuela.

Syria’s interim President Ahmad Al-Sharaa led an offensive that overthrew the Assad government nearly two years ago and has embarked on a policy of change that has impressed the Trump administration. His moves have led to hopes of eventual stability in a country that was wracked by civil war and the Daesh insurgency that engulfed northeast and western Iraq for years.

Wednesday’s withdrawal of US forces from Iraq may mean that the Syrian government plays a greater role in preventing a Daesh resurgence.