US urges UN to vote to lift sanctions against Syria's Ahmad Al Shara

Decision expected this week on President and Interior Minister's removal from black list

Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara. FII Institute

The UN Security Council is expected to vote this week on a US-drafted resolution that would remove Syria’s President, Ahmad Al Shara, and his Interior Minister Anas Khattab from a UN sanctions list, diplomats say.

The measure, significantly watered down after weeks of closed-door negotiations, comes as Washington presses Security Council members to finalise the decision before Mr Al Shara’s planned visit to the US on Monday.

A copy of the latest draft, obtained by The National and circulated to council members on Tuesday, states that the body, “acting under Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations”, would remove Mr Al Shara and Mr Khattab from the list.

The resolution remains under the council’s “silence procedure” until Wednesday morning, after which members can raise objections.

“It is not clear yet whether China will veto or let the resolution pass through, as US changes do not resolve the fundamental issues China has with easing and lifting UN sanctions impacting Syria,” Maya Ungar, UN analyst at the International Crisis Group told The National.

“Namely that the council is moving too fast without more concrete actions from Al Shara and his government, especially on counterterrorism given Chinese concerns over the presence of Uyghur militants in Syria who fought closely along with the new government.”

As The National first reported, Washington sought to remove Hayat Tahrir Al Sham – the militant umbrella group led by Mr Al Shara that overthrew the regime of former president Bashar Al Assad in December – as a sanctioned entity but China objected.

If adopted, the resolution would formally remove both men from the UN’s ISIS and Al Qaeda sanctions list, which imposes asset freezes and travel bans on people associated with extremist groups.

If no objections arise, the vote – anticipated by Thursday afternoon – would require at least nine votes in favour and no veto from any of the five permanent members: the US, Britain, France, Russia and China.

The United Nations Security Council sanctions panel has repeatedly granted travel waivers to Syrian President Sharaa this year, making a visit to the White House likely even if the US-backed resolution fails to pass.

Mr Al Shara is expected to arrive in Washington on Monday.

Although this will be his first visit to the White House, it will mark his second trip to the United States this year, following a landmark appearance at the United Nations in September, when he became the first Syrian president in decades to address the General Assembly in New York.

“This visit is certainly historic,” Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani told a panel at the Manama Dialogue in Bahrain last week.

“Many topics will be discussed, starting with the lifting of sanctions. “Today we are fighting (ISIS) … any effort in this regard requires international support.”