The U.S. State Department on Monday officially removed Syria from its State Sponsors of Terrorism list, fulfilling President Donald Trump's commitment to provide sanctions relief to the post-Assad government.
Syria is no longer subject to prohibitions under the Terrorism List Governments Sanctions Regulations, according to the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Washington also revoked the designation of the al-Nusrah Front, also known as Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization.
The Treasury's office also removed Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham from the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list.
Consequently, General License 25, which had authorized transactions otherwise prohibited because of the group's involvement in the government, was revoked because it is "no longer necessary," according to the office.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the decision recognizes the "positive actions" and "further commitments" made by the Syrian government to "fully distance Syria from acts of international terrorism." Rubio noted that under the new government, Damascus has taken "significant steps" to counter terror group Daesh, al-Qa'ida, Hezbollah and "Iran-aligned groups," and formally joined the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh last November.
He emphasized that removing the terrorism label "eliminates the final major barriers" for private sector investment, facilitating Syria's "economic recovery and reintegration into the global economy."
U.S. envoy to Syria Tom Barrack also called the end of the designation a "decisive step in Syria's remarkable journey from isolation to partnership, and from a source of terrorism to a committed partner in the global fight against it."
Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham was one of the most prominent armed groups opposing Bashar Assad's forces during Syria's civil war. The group was led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, who became Syria's president after Assad's ouster.
The policy shift followed the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024 and subsequent efforts by Sharaa to stabilize the country.
Meanwhile, Syria's finance minister and the governor of its central bank hailed their country's removal from Washington's list of state sponsors of terrorism on Monday, characterising it as a major opportunity.
Finance Minister Mohammed Barnieh described Washington's move to de-list the country as "a major and historic success for Syrian diplomacy," according to the official news agency SANA.
It "opens a major and long-awaited door to strengthening Syria's integration into the global economic and financial system, attracting investment and modern technologies, and supporting development opportunities."
Central bank chief Safwat Raslan hailed what he called "a historic step that restores the country to its natural place in the global economic system."
He added his bank was "working to build a modern and reliable financial system capable of evolving with developments and taking advantage of all opportunities."
