Syria: four new ministers added to EU sanctions list

The Council today decided to add four recently-appointed ministers to the list of persons and entities subject to targeted EU restrictive measures in view of the situation in Syria.

 Today’s decision brings to 287 the number of persons targeted by a travel ban and an asset freeze. The list also includes 70 entities, which are subject to an asset freeze. The sanctions currently in place against the Syrian regime were introduced in 2011, in response to the violent repression of the Syrian civilian population. They also target companies and prominent business people benefitting from their ties to the regime and the war economy. Restrictive measures also include a ban on the import of oil, restrictions on certain investments, a freeze of the Syrian central bank’s assets that are held in the EU, and export restrictions on equipment and technology that could be used for internal repression and on equipment and technology for the monitoring or interception of internet or telephone communications. The goal of the EU sanctions is to put pressure on the Syrian regime to halt repression and negotiate a lasting political settlement of the Syrian crisis in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2254. They are part and parcel of the EU’s wider approach to the Syria crisis. Sanctions on Syria remain under constant review. The relevant legal acts, including the names of the persons and entities concerned, have been published in the Official Journal.