The Media Line: US Lifts Long-Standing Ban on Arms Exports to Syria  

US Lifts Long-Standing Ban on Arms Exports to Syria  

By The Media Line Staff  

The US lifted its long-standing blanket ban on arms exports to Syria on Wednesday, allowing proposed defense sales and security services for Damascus to be reviewed individually.  

“The Department of State is amending the International Traffic in Arms Regulations to remove Syria from the list of countries subject to a policy of denial for licenses and other approvals,” the State Department said in a public notice published in the Federal Register.  

Under the change, requests for US arms sales to Syria will be considered on a case-by-case basis rather than automatically rejected under the previous policy. The administrative rule formally takes effect Thursday.  

President Donald Trump acted last year to ease economic sanctions on Syria that had remained in place for decades during the rule of now-ousted President Bashar Assad.  

Secretary of State Marco Rubio took another step in August by rescinding Syria’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism, helping pave the way for the change in US arms export policy.  

The State Department has also announced plans to reopen the US embassy in Damascus after a 14-year closure.  

With Syria removed from the list, seven countries remain subject to the US policy of denying licenses for arms exports: Belarus, China, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea and Venezuela.  

Separately, the US completed the withdrawal of forces from its final base in Iraq on Wednesday.  

The end of the US arms embargo on Syria may improve Damascus’ ability to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State.