How will the lifting of US sanctions help Syrians rebuild their country?

How will the lifting of US sanctions help Syrians rebuild their country?

May 15, 2025  
Syrians are describing it as a turning point -- "the second joy, since the fall of Assad".

US President Donald Trump has announced he will lift all sanctions on Syria--as a way to help the country rebuild after years of civil war.

The UN estimates half of the Syrian population is displaced, and nearly 75% need humanitarian aid.
 
It says, at its current rate of growth, Syria will take at least half a century to achieve its pre-war economic level.

President Ahmed Al Sharaa has already called on the US to invest in the nation's oil and gas sector.

But can he capitalise on the removal of US restrictions and transform the fragmented and devastated country?

And what about Syria's fragile security situation?

Presenter: Folly Bah Thibault

Guests:

Sinan Hatahet - Non-Resident Fellow, Atlantic Council's Syria Project.

Joshua Landis - Director of the Center for Middle East Studies, University of Oklahoma.

Omar Alshogre - a Syrian refugee and Director for Detainee Affairs at the Syrian Emergency Task Force.