Ties restored after 14 years: UK resumes geopolitical relations with Syria, extends $129 million financial aid
British foreign secretary David Lammy met Syria's interim president Ahmad al‑Sharaa in Damascus on Saturday, restoring formal ties after a 14‑year rupture caused by the country's civil conflict and the long rule of the Assad family.
UK has pledged a financial assistance package of £94.5 million ($129 million) which will be used for emergency relief, education and livelihood projects within Syria neighbouring states hosting Syrian refugees.
Both sides described the talks as a reset. Al‑Sharaa's office said the pair reviewed bilateral relations, prospects for deeper cooperation and the latest regional and international developments, AP reported.
London called the visit a signal of sustained support for Syria's post‑war transition. A statement from the British foreign office pledged help 'to rebuild the country's economy, deliver an inclusive political transition and forge a path to justice for victims of the Assad government.' It announced fresh UK funding to eliminate Assad‑era chemical weapons and supply immediate humanitarian aid aimed at shoring up Middle East security and curbing irregular migration.
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Britain stressed that ensuring the Islamic State group's territorial defeat 'endures' remains central to the plan; IS, which once held swathes of Syria and Iraq, lost its final foothold in March 2019.
Return of geopolitical ties follows April's sanction lifts on a dozen Syrian entities, including government departments and media outlets, and the earlier delisting of two dozen banks and oil firms. The détente gathers momentum from Washington as well: earlier this week, US president Donald Trump signed an executive order scrapping many American economic sanctions on Damascus.
Syria's new leadership has been courting foreign investment and political recognition while grappling with a devastated economy and infrastructure after a conflict that killed an estimated half‑million people. Al‑Sharaa, whose Hayat Tahrir al‑Sham Islamist coalition toppled Bashar Assad in December, has visited several oil‑rich Arab states and France in a bid to secure reconstruction funds.
Lammy also visited Beirut, where he met Lebanese president Joseph Aoun. Aoun told the visiting minister that Lebanon will raise troop numbers along its border with Israel to 10,000, insisting the only armed forces there will be the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers, a pledge aimed at calming tensions after last year's 14‑month Israel‑Hezbollah war.
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