Coordinator of the Syrian Opposition Coalition’s Caesar Act Follow-up Team, Abdel Majeed Barakat, stressed that the economic meltdown the Assad regime is going through cannot be attributed to the Caesar Act which took effect only few days ago. The collapse of the economy, rather, came as a direct result of the accumulation of several reasons, chief among them is the total war the Assad regime is waging against Syria and its people as well as its insistence on pursuing a military solution instead of meeting the people’s legitimate demands.
Barakat added that Assad’s handing over of the country’s assets to Russia and Iran, his destruction Syria’s infrastructure, the forceful displacement of more than half of Syria’s population, and the growing corruption and predation of the country led to the current economic meltdown and the collapse of the local currency.
The Assad regime is seeking to blame Caesar Act for the consequences of its crimes and the disastrous effects it brought on the Syrian economy, Barakat said, adding that the sanctions that were imposed under Caesar Act were well thought-out and exclusively targeted at the regime.
Barakat indicated that sanctions could be suspended should the Assad regime stop the killing of civilians, release detainees, and allow a political transition.
The Caesar Act will help deprive the Assad regime of a sizeable amount of support it is receiving from its backers and the resources it is using in its war against the Syrian people, he said. Barakat pointed out that the most important result of the Act is that it will help protect civilians by weakening the military option being pursued by the regime. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)