Trump announces plan to lift sanctions on Syria following fall of Assad regime
President Donald Trump announces plans to lift sanctions on Syria, as a way to offer the country a chance for recovery and stability after the fall of the Assad regime.
As a way to reshape and improve the United States' relationship with Syria, President Donald Trump announced plans to lift sanctions on the war-torn country.
This decision follows the fall of the Assad regime, which occurred under the Biden administration in December 2024, signaling a new phase in Syrian politics and diplomacy.
US-Syria relations
On May 13, 2025 at the Saudi-US Investment Forum at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Donald Trump announced he had been talking to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which helped him reach the decision.
The plan to lift sanctions on Syria is the first step in more than 10 years towards normalizing relations between the U.S. and Syria. Additionally, as Trump highlighted in his speech, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to meet with Syria’s foreign minister in Turkey “later this week.”
The fall of the Assad regime
After many decades, the Assad regime fell last December during the Biden Administration. That is why, Trump's decision has been so unexpected. According to the U.S. President, Syria has had their "share of travesty, war, killing in many years" and the sanctions imposed to them served a "really important purpose at the time".
Nonetheless, Trump expressed his desire for Syria's "time to shine", adding that the new government (Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa) will hopefully "succeed in stabilizing the country in keeping peace.”
