Earlier this week, the Council of the EU adopted a series of legal instruments giving effect to what had been agreed on 20 May 2025, to significantly reduce sanctions on the Syrian Arab Republic. As a result, all EU economic restrictive measures targeting Syria have been lifted, except for those maintained on specific security-related grounds. This marks a substantial shift in the EU’s sanctions posture, intended to facilitate renewed economic engagement, support post-war reconstruction and encourage institutional re-integration, while preserving targeted measures where legal and strategic considerations continue to apply.
As part of this move, 24 entities have been removed from the EU’s list of designated persons and entities subject to asset freezes (vid. Annex II, EU Regulation Nº36/2012). These include financial institutions such as the Central Bank of Syria and commercial actors operating in strategic sectors for the country’s recovery, such as oil production and refining, cotton, telecommunications and media. The council characterises this lifting of sanctions as a principled response to a moment of historic transition, and a reaffirmation of the EU’s longstanding partnership with the Syrian people.