Rubio reaffirms US support for peaceful, prosperous Syria
US officials praised Syria's political transition and announced pivotal legislative move to normalize relations
WASHINGTON, United States (MNTV) — US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has reaffirmed Washington’s support for a peaceful, prosperous Syria, marking the first anniversary of the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s rule with strong public backing for the country’s political transition and a landmark legislative step to normalize bilateral relations.
Senior US officials praised Syria’s post-Assad transition as “significant,” announcing the repeal of the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act sanctions, once a cornerstone of Washington’s pressure campaign against the former regime.
The move signals a major shift in US policy toward diplomatic and economic engagement with post-war Syria.
Rubio said Syria has “turned a new page” and taken “meaningful steps” toward stability, reiterating US support for a peaceful, inclusive future for the Syrian people and backing international efforts to reconstruct Syria’s political and economic institutions.
Leaders of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee welcomed the repeal, which was embedded in the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Committee Chairman Jim Risch and Ranking Member Jeanne Shaheen said sustained sanctions pressure, declining Russian military backing for Assad, and Israeli opposition to Iranian proxy forces helped create the conditions that ultimately led to the regime’s collapse, describing the anniversary as a “hopeful moment” for the region.
At the same time, the senators outlined serious unresolved challenges. They praised Damascus’s “serious commitment” to counterterrorism cooperation, while urging Syria’s new leadership under President Ahmed al-Sharaa to prevent renewed sectarian violence, curb Russian and Iranian influence, eliminate illicit weapons stockpiles, and cooperate in locating missing American citizens.
They cautioned that while there is now a “prospect for peace that was unthinkable just a year ago,” Syria still faces a long and fragile path toward full stabilization and democratic governance.
The Caesar Act, named after a Syrian military defector who exposed mass torture and killings by the Assad regime, had been central to the US sanctions regime. While the Trump administration previously suspended aspects of the law through executive waivers, its full repeal marks a symbolic and practical step toward diplomatic normalization.
The policy shift follows Assad’s flight to Russia on December 8, 2024, which ended more than five decades of Baath Party rule, and the subsequent rise of Ahmed al-Sharaa to lead a transitional administration tasked with overseeing Syria’s political reconstruction.
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