Russia welcomes the lifting of sanctions against Syria by the United States

Russia welcomes the lifting of sanctions against Syria by the United States. This was stated on May 27 by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, answering a question from a correspondent of Izvestia.

"Sanctions against Syria have always been a step that we have condemned and demanded its termination. Because although it was formally announced that sanctions were being imposed against the regime of Bashar al—Assad, in fact they were directly, very painfully hitting all sectors of Syrian society, the Syrian people," Lavrov said at a press conference after meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

He noted that the Russian Federation, along with most Arab and Islamic countries, advocated the lifting of sanctions and the return of seized money, for example, the Afghan people.

"The fact that the President [of the United States Donald] Trump has realized the need for such a step, and we welcome it. Because [the sanctions] were suffered by none other than the Syrian people, and Europe, too, in its noble thoughts, when it saw that America lifted the sanctions, also seemed to follow this path," Lavrov said.

He added that Moscow is cooperating with the new authorities in Damascus, and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with the leader of the Middle Eastern republic, Ahmed al-Sharaa, by phone. They discussed, among other things, trade, economic and other relations between the countries in the new conditions.

"We believe that it is very important to participate in efforts to support the current authorities in order to prevent another outbreak of the conflict and prevent the collapse of the Syrian Arab Republic," the Foreign Minister stressed.

On the exit of the movement: the United States begins a phased withdrawal of troops from Syria

Israel already fears Turkey's growing influence in the Arab republic.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on May 23 that the United States had suspended sanctions against Syria for 180 days in order to provide Damascus with electricity, water and humanitarian aid. He stressed that these actions were the first step towards new relations between the two countries. Rubio noted that Trump thus provided the Syrian government with a chance to promote peace and stability both inside and outside the country.