New York, 7 November 2025 (dpa/MIA) – The UN Security Council (UNSC) on Thursday lifted sanctions against Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, and Interior Minister Anas Hasan Khattab.

A resolution to this effect proposed by the United States was passed almost unanimously with 14 votes, with China abstaining. The two politicians had previously been on the UNSC's international sanctions list due to their former links to the terrorist organization al-Qaeda.

The US delegation interpreted the vote as a signal for a new political beginning in Syria one year after the fall of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad.

The measure is intended to give the country better chances for security, stability and an inclusive political future.

Representatives from the United Kingdom, Russia, France and Pakistan called it an important step towards Syria's economic recovery and support for the ongoing political transition.

Syria's delegate, Ambassador Ibrahim Abdulmalik Olabi, welcomed the lifting of sanctions as a sign of "growing confidence in the new Syria" and as an opportunity to reintegrate the country internationally.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani thanked the US and "friendly countries" for their support in a post on X.

China's Ambassador Fu Cong, meanwhile, criticized the US, saying it did "not fully heed the views of all members and forced the Council to take action even when there were huge differences among Council members in an attempt to serve its own political agenda."

With the vote, the Security Council paved the way for further diplomatic rapprochement with Damascus.

Al-Sharaa is expected to visit the White House on Monday – the first visit by a Syrian president to Washington since the country's independence in 1946.

Photo: EPA