Move comes after Assad regime’s fall and signals fresh US engagement with former militant-led government
President Donald Trump has announced that the United States will lift all sanctions on Syria, marking a seismic shift in American foreign policy and paving the way for renewed ties with the war-torn country’s transitional government.
Speaking at the US-Saudi Investment Forum in Riyadh on Tuesday during a four-day Middle East tour, Trump declared: “I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness. It’s their time to shine. We’re taking them all off.”
The announcement follows the dramatic collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024 and the rise of Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former al-Qaeda commander turned rebel leader, who now heads Syria’s transitional government. Sharaa, who once led Jabhat al-Nusra and later Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), has positioned himself as reformed, pledging stability and economic reform.
Trump’s decision appears to have been influenced by discussions with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The White House confirmed that Trump is expected to meet informally with Sharaa in Riyadh on Wednesday—marking the first face-to-face contact between US and Syrian leaders since 2000.
From pariah to partner?
Syria has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism by the US since 1979, with successive waves of sanctions imposed in 2004 and 2011 targeting the Assad regime’s repression and human rights abuses. These measures intensified during Syria’s civil war, which claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and left the economy in ruins.
Trump acknowledged the severity of the past restrictions, describing them as “brutal and crippling,” but argued they had “served their purpose.” He voiced hope that the new leadership could stabilise the country and rebuild ties with the West: “There’s a new government that will hopefully succeed in stabilising the country and keeping peace. That’s what we want to see.”
Syria’s foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani, welcomed the move as a “pivotal turning point” and praised Trump’s “courage” in reversing longstanding US policy.
Political risks and real estate diplomacy
Sharaa, who still faces a warrant for terrorism charges in Iraq, has reportedly offered a suite of incentives to secure US backing—including access to Syrian oil, reconstruction contracts, diplomatic recognition of Israel, and a proposal to build a Trump Tower in Damascus. A mockup of the project has already circulated among advisers close to Sharaa.
“This is how you win his heart and mind,” said Radwan Ziadeh, a Syrian activist connected to the transitional government.
The offer was reportedly conceived with help from a US Republican senator and is being framed as part of a broader strategy to secure Gulf funding for Syria’s reconstruction. Saudi Arabia and Qatar recently agreed to settle Syria’s US$15 million debt to the World Bank, and further investment pledges are expected if US sanctions are formally lifted.
Trump’s shift, however, risks alienating allies such as Israel, which has labelled Sharaa’s government a “terror group from Idlib” and continues to carry out air strikes within Syria, including a recent attack near the presidential palace in Damascus.
Challenges ahead
Despite the diplomatic thaw, serious questions remain about Syria’s future governance, human rights protections, and its capacity to control extremist factions. The United Nations estimates it will take more than 50 years for Syria to regain its pre-war economic footing without substantial foreign investment.
A February UNDP report found that nine in ten Syrians live in poverty, one-quarter are unemployed, and the war has erased decades of development. The country’s GDP has shrunk by more than half since 2011, with an estimated US$800bn in lost output.
Natasha Hall, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the move would be seen as a victory for Sharaa and MBS alike: “Trump is saying this publicly to reassure others that they have tacit approval to give Syria a shot. The optics of that are a big deal.”
Still, she cautioned that the lifting of sanctions alone does not resolve Syria’s challenges. “It’s an important step, but there are plenty of other obstacles.”
