U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Representative Joe Wilson have sent a bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, seeking further information and a timeline regarding the revision of U.S. sanctions on Syria, following the end of the Assad regime. In their letter, they emphasized the need for the State Department to clarify their plans, noting, “We mutually recognize Syria’s historic opportunity to rebuild in the absence of Assad’s repressive rule.”
The letter acts as a follow-up to a previous request sent to the Department of State, urging the administration to reassess outdated sanctions, which they claim jeopardize regional stability and reconstruction efforts. Warren and Wilson reiterated the need for policy adjustments and outlined a potential roadmap for Syria to seek relief from some U.S. restrictions. “In our previous letter, we highlighted the need to reevaluate our broad sanctions on Syria, which now undermine U.S. objectives and recovery efforts,” they wrote.
The lawmakers also expressed concerns that current sanctions may threaten Syria's economic and social stability. "Our current sanctions not only threaten Syria’s economic and social stability but also risk spurring migration, worsening dependency on illicit drug exports, and once again providing inroads for Iran or Russia,” they added.
Although the State Department responded on April 2, acknowledging the changing conditions in Syria and issuing General License 24 to maintain essential services, the response reportedly lacked specifics about additional policy measures or timelines for wider reforms. Warren and Wilson are requesting a briefing to better comprehend the administration’s strategy going forward.
The lawmakers stressed the urgency of timely action, cautioning that delaying U.S. policy adjustments could squander an opportunity to stabilize the region.