The United States reiterated Bashar Al-Assad regime is to blame for the deteriorating economic conditions in Syria, reaffirming that UN Security Council resolution 2254 is the only exit strategy available to the Assad regime.
In remarks it published on Twitter on Wednesday, the US embassy in Damascus said that “the Assad regime must take irreversible steps to implement a political solution to the Syrian conflict that respects the rights and will of the Syrian people, or face further targeted sanctions and isolation.”
“As Ambassador Jeffrey has repeatedly stated publicly and privately, Bashar al-Assad and his regime are directly responsible for Syria’s economic meltdown,” the US embassy added.
It stressed that “the United States will continue targeted sanctions and increased economic pressure on the Assad regime until there is irreversible progress on the political process, including a nationwide ceasefire, as called for by UNSCR 2254.”
Earlier this week, a bipartisan group of four key lawmakers renewed their calls on the Donald Trump administration to implement a stringent sanctions package on the Assad regime.
“The administration must engage in vigorous, sustained enforcement of the Caesar Act in order to send a message to the regime and its enablers that Assad remains a pariah,” the lawmakers wrote.
The Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act sanctions anyone who backs the Assad regime’s military, energy, construction, and engineering sectors for a period of ten years, especially Russia and Iran. (Source: SOC’s Media Department)
