Shaheen, Wilson, Warren Urge State Department to Remove Syria from State Sponsor of Terrorism List

Shaheen, Wilson, Warren Urge State Department to Remove Syria from State Sponsor of Terrorism List

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs sent a bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging the Administration to remove Syria from the State Sponsor of Terrorism (SST) list.

In the letter, Shaheen, Wilson and Warren argue that the legal basis for Syria's designation no longer applies following the fall of the Assad regime and that maintaining the designation is now a major obstacle to Syria's economic recovery, counterterrorism cooperation and long-term stability. They also stress that removing Syria from the SST list would advance U.S. national security interests by creating opportunities for responsible American and allied investment while reducing Syria's dependence on Russia, China and Iran. Shaheen, Wilson and Warren also argue that the removal of the SST designation does not mean deprioritizing pushing Syria to continue making progress in a variety of areas, such as decreasing Russian military presence, taking concrete steps to share power across Syria's diverse communities and ensuring women have a full seat at the table. Last month, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced bipartisan legislation led by Ranking Member Shaheen and Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) to repeal Assad-era sanctions while preserving authorities to target individual human rights abusers and other malign actors.

"Since the fall of the Assad regime, President Ahmed Al-Sharaa and the new Syrian government have demonstrated continued commitment to counterterrorism operations within Syria. While Syria does need to make more progress in a variety of areas, discussed further below, the grounds for the SST designation in U.S. law no longer apply and the listing remains a significant barrier to achieving the Administration and congressional priority of giving Syria a chance to succeed," wrote the lawmakers.

"U.S. financial institutions have been clear that the combination of export control requirements and reputational, insurance, legal and correspondent banking risks stemming from Syria's SST designation are too large and can trigger massive fines and loss of U.S. regulatory standing. The State Department has worked to give American businesses an advantage in investing in Syria, and while other barriers like the security situation also remain, removing the SST designation would meaningfully increase these financial institutions' ability to enable the private sector to operate in Syria," continued the lawmakers.

"The designation also undermines U.S. national security interests with respect to adversaries and competitors seeking to regain influence in Syria. As you argued in your confirmation hearing, Iran and Russia have been largely pushed out after supporting Assad's brutal rule, but they are pragmatic foreign policy operators who will exploit any U.S. failure to make the best of our opportunities. Their willingness to engage regardless of U.S. sanctions regimes gives them an advantage over responsible actors. For example, Russia continues to keep Syria reliant on Russian crude oil and wheat supplies while maintaining military bases from which it can project power in the region," concluded the lawmakers.

Full text of the letter is available HERE.

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