Political circles in Washington announced a US understanding that they described as "historic" that paves the way for Syria's permanent removal from the list of state sponsors of terrorism, in a move that is considered the most prominent since the restoration of Syrian-American relations after the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024.
The head of political affairs at the Syrian American Council, Mohammed Alaa Ghanem, revealed on his account on the X platform that Joe Wilson, a senior member of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Republican US House of Representatives, reached a direct agreement with Secretary of State Marco Rubio to push this decision forward in an accelerated political move to keep pace with the profound changes on the ground and in the Syrian capital, Damascus., according to his expression
According to Ghanem, the understanding includes "urgent legislative and executive steps" starting with a bill that Wilson will introduce this week to provide legal cover for Syria's write-off, along with a unified policy message from Congress affirming support for reshaping relations with Damascus.
Ghanem spoke of pressure exerted by lawmakers on the US administration to speed up administrative procedures and announce the official removal of Syria's name from the list of state sponsors of terrorism as soon as possible.
The initiators believe that keeping Syria on the list constitutes the biggest obstacle to the flow of international and American investments, and hinders reconstruction efforts, considering that the step will open the door to a new economic phase commensurate with the ongoing political transformation in the country.
What does the understanding need to become an effective decision?
Activating the decision to remove Syria from the list of "state sponsors of terrorism" through the legislative process led by US Rep. Joe Wilson requires going through a series of constitutional steps within Congress before it reaches the president's office for approval, according to sources specialized in US affairs.
The sources told "Syrian News" that the process is to officially submit the bill within the House of Representatives and refer it to the Foreign Affairs Committee, which is in charge of studying it and making the necessary amendments before it is submitted to the plenary session for a vote, and after obtaining the required majority, the bill moves to the Senate, where it is subject to review within the Foreign Relations Committee, and then it is put to a vote before all members.
The sources added that the final version must be identical between the two houses, and in case of disagreements, it will be returned to a joint committee to unify the text, and when the legislative process is completed, the law will be submitted to the President of the United States for signature and conversion into a valid resolution, while the Constitution allows the president to use the veto, which Congress can only override by a two-thirds majority.
The sources pointed out that with these successive steps, the fate of the legislation will be determined, which may open the door to a radical change in Syria's legal and political position within the US system.
Syria on the list of "sponsors of terrorism" since 1979
Syria was added to the list of "state sponsors of terrorism" on December 29, 1979, becoming one of the first countries to be included in this designation since its establishment under US President Jimmy Carter.
Since then, Damascus has had extensive economic and financial consequences, with the designation imposing severe restrictions on exports and technology of American origin, isolating the Syrian banking system from direct financial transactions with U.S. banks, and freezing government assets within the United States.
The effects included the suspension of development aid and the prohibition of international financial institutions from providing any loans or facilities to Damascus, as well as secondary sanctions targeting foreign companies dealing with Syria's vital sectors, leading to a long-term economic blockade that affected trade, investment, and reconstruction.
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The U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism currently includes only three countries besides Syria, which is being delisted: Iran, Cuba, and North Korea, all of which are subject to similar economic and financial restrictions imposed by Washington decades ago. If the legislative and executive procedures to remove Syria are completed, the list will be limited to these three countries alone, an indication that the scope of the designation has shrunk compared to years ago.
Over the past decades, the list has seen a number of countries delisted after major political changes or broad diplomatic settlements, including Sudan, which was removed in 2020 following the fall of the former regime and paid huge compensation to victims of previous attacks.
Washington also removed Cuba from the list in 2015 before later reinstating it, North Korea, which was removed from the list in 2008 and returned in 2017, Libya, which was removed after abandoning its weapons of mass destruction programs, Iraq, which was permanently removed after the regime change in 2003, and South Yemen, which was automatically removed after Yemen's unification in 1990.
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