The New York Times reports that the Trump administration has lifted most U.S. sanctions on Syria as a goodwill gesture toward the country’s new president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, following the fall of Bashar al-Assad. While widely welcomed inside Syria, where over 90% of the population lives in poverty, the move comes with a set of informal but clear U.S. expectations.
According to the report by Erika Solomon and Ben Hubbard, Washington seeks steps toward normalizing ties with Israel, eventual participation in the Abraham Accords, dismantling chemical weapons stockpiles, managing and disclosing the presence of foreign fighters, expelling Palestinian militant groups, and removing Iranian military influence.
The U.S. also demands cooperation in locating missing Americans, including journalist Austin Tice, and preventing a resurgence of ISIS by taking over detention camps currently run by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.
Though not framed as formal conditions, these goals reflect a transactional approach: strategic concessions in exchange for international rehabilitation. The administration has shown little interest in Syria’s internal governance, focusing instead on securing U.S. regional interests.
