Syrian Foreign Ministry:

Damascus to confront US sanctions as it does against terrorism

TEHRAN (defapress) – Syrian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Thursday, strongly condemning the fresh round of US sanctions against the country.

News ID: 81355

Date: 19 June 2020 - 12:40

US sanctions are directed against the Syrian people and violate all possible international rules, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, adding that Syria will resist the sanction pressures as persistently as it does terrorism.

US President Donald Trump signed the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act at the end of 2019. The law took effect on 1 June and includes sanctions affecting almost every aspect of the Syrian economy. The sanctions list was expanded on 17 June, and 14 high-profile people in the nation were affected, including the spouse of Syrian President Bashar Assad, Asma Assad, and the president's sister Bushra Assad, as well as 21 organizations.

"The Syrian people and the army, which have shown historical resilience against the American project, defending their sovereignty... this people will resist their sanctions with the same stubbornness that they fought terrorism," the ministry said.

"Washington’s statements are the most blatant manifestation of lies to cover up their terror, which shed the blood of Syrians," it said.

Earlier in the day, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced introducing 39 new sanction designations against Syria, targeting the country's president, Bashar al-Assad, and his wife, Asma, and Assad's brother and top general, Maher al-Assad, among others, all under the Caesar Act, signed by Trump in December 2019.

Condemning the new round of US sanctions under the so-called Caesar Act as a form of ‘economic terrorism, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Seyyed Abbas Mousavi said that “Iran attaches no value to such cruel and unilateral sanctions which arise from bullying behavior.”

“We will continue economic cooperation with the Syrian nation and government as before and despite sanctions, we will strengthen economic ties with the country,” he said.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said Tuesday that US sanctions would not affect cooperation between Moscow and Damascus, including military - in the fight against terrorism in Syria.

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