"U.S. Treasury: Syria removed from list of state sponsors of terrorism"

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio officially announced on Monday the removal of Syria from the US list of State Sponsors of Terrorism, stating that this move represents a “historic step” that provides the Syrian people with a new path toward growth and prosperity.

Rubio said in a statement, “I have today officially revoked Syria’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism, following the expiration of the mandatory 45-day Congressional notification period.” He added that the decision also removes “Hayat Tahrir al-Sham” from the list of “Specially Designated Global Terrorists.” He clarified that the administration of President Donald Trump took “unprecedented” steps during the past year to ease sanctions on Syria, in the interest of the Syrian people, pointing to the executive order issued in June 2025 regarding the cancellation of sanctions and the termination of the national emergency related to them, as well as the review of various sanctions and terrorism-related designations linked to Syria.

Minister Rubio stated that this US move comes “in response to positive measures and additional commitments undertaken by the Syrian government, led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, to completely distance Syria from acts of international terrorism.” The US Secretary of State affirmed that these measures would help remove obstacles to private sector investment in Syria, strengthen the country’s economic recovery, and facilitate its reintegration into the global economy.

The US Treasury Department had previously announced that the US State Department had removed Syria from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement that this action “will help encourage further investment in Syria, thereby enhancing its political and economic stability,” nearly two years after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December 2024.

For his part, Safwat Raslan, Governor of the Central Bank of Syria, welcomed the United States’ decision to remove his country from the list of State Sponsors of Terrorism, ending a designation that had been in place for 47 years. Raslan wrote in a post on the “X” platform commenting on the US decision, “The removal of Syria’s designation as a State Sponsor of Terrorism is a historic step that returns it to its natural position within the global economic system,” adding that the Central Bank is working “to build a modern and reliable financial system capable of keeping pace with and capitalizing on all opportunities.”