Lawmakers Back Trump’s Easing of Syria Sanctions
Several Republican and Democratic lawmakers welcomed President Donald Trump’s executive order this week to remove certain financial sanctions on Syria (see 2506300055).
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In a joint statement, Sens. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., chairman and ranking member, respectively, of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that while they still have “some concerns” about Syria, the country’s “new government has demonstrated a willingness to cooperate on key U.S. national security interests, including counterterrorism, eliminating chemical weapons, countering Iranian influence, and regional integration.”
Risch and Shaheen cautioned that Syria must “remain on the trajectory toward stability and security for all.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee, and Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, jointly urged the Trump administration to “continue removing outdated barriers to reconstruction while applying targeted measures against terrorists and human rights abusers.”
Warren and Wilson also called on Congress to repeal the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019, whose sanctions “were designed to pressure the [now-former Bashar Assad] regime -- but now risk undermining long-term stability in the region.” Wilson and Shaheen introduced legislation in June to repeal the act (see 2506200029).