Russian Efforts to Circumvent New US Sanctions

People walk at the annual Damascus International Fair, Syria September 6, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
People walk at the annual Damascus International Fair, Syria September 6, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
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Russian Efforts to Circumvent New US Sanctions

People walk at the annual Damascus International Fair, Syria September 6, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki
People walk at the annual Damascus International Fair, Syria September 6, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki

Russian reactions to the Caesar Act, a US law which came into force on Wednesday imposing new US sanctions on Syria and its allies, continued on Friday as diplomats downplayed its repercussions.

Russian diplomatic sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that Moscow warned the US during talks held between the two sides in February that the law “would be ineffective even if Washington insists on applying it.”

Therefore, Russians are ready to face and evade the sanctions, which target companies that deal with Bashar Assad's government.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov has said his country would not halt its military and economic cooperation with the Syrian government.

Former Russian ambassador Andrey Baklanov told Asharq Al-Awsat on Friday that there is no need to overreact to the new law.

The ambassador, who takes part in consultation talks on the Syrian war and other Middle Eastern issues, said that despite the Caesar Act, Moscow would find means to continue to offer military, technical, economic and financial support to Syria.

“Our efforts are not restricted to Syria. We will even continue … to support Iran and other countries in the region and outside that are affected by US sanctions,” Baklanov said.
He said Russia has a long experience in dealing with economic sanctions. “Moscow does not fear this development,” the former ambassador said.

The Russian diplomat said Moscow would be able to establish companies as alternatives to the firms that would exit the Syrian market.

Meanwhile, Andrey Chuprygin, a senior lecturer at the National Research University–Higher School of Economics in Moscow, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Act would have a severe impact on Syrian citizens.

“The Americans say the sanctions aim to defend civilians but the problem is that this Act would negatively affect the entry of humanitarian aid and medial and food supplies to Syria,” he said.

“The sanctions would complicate the living conditions of Syrian citizens, who already suffer under dire economic conditions,” Chuprygin added.



Tom Barrack: There Is One Syria

Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
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Tom Barrack: There Is One Syria

Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)
Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, meets with US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack at the People's Palace in Damascus, Syria, Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack described on Saturday the lifting of US sanctions on Syria as a “strategic fresh start” for the war-ravaged nation and said that the US was not intending to pursue “nation-building or federalism.”

The Syrian state news agency, SANA, quoted Barrack as telling the Arab News website, that the Trump administration’s removal of sanctions on May 13 was aimed at offering the Syrian people “a new slice of hope” following over a decade of civil war.

He described the Middle East as a “difficult zip code at an amazingly historic time.”

“President (Trump)’s message is peace and prosperity,” Barrack said, adding that “sanctions gave the people hope. That’s really all that happened at that moment.”

He noted that the US policy shift is intended to give the emerging Syrian regime a chance to rebuild.

The envoy clarified that the original US involvement in Syria was driven by counter-ISIS operations, and not aimed at regime change or humanitarian intervention.

He reaffirmed Washington’s position against a federal model for Syria, saying the country must remain unified with a single army and government.

“There’s not going to be six countries. There’s going to be one Syria,” he said, ruling out the possibility of separate autonomous regions.

Barrack added: “The US is not dictating terms but would not support a separatist outcome: We’re not going to be there forever as the babysitter.”

Last Wednesday, the Syrian government welcomed any path with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that would enhance the unity and territorial integrity of the country, reiterating its unwavering commitment to the principle of “One Syria, One Army, One Government,” and its categorical rejection of any form of partition or federalism.

Barrack confirmed that the US is closely monitoring the announcement that the first group of PKK fighters had destroyed their weapons in northern Iraq.

“This could be the first step towards long-term resolution of the Kurdish issue in Türkiye,” he said, but cautioned that questions remain about the SDF’s ongoing ties to the PKK leadership. “They (the SDF) have to decide: Are they Syrians? Are they Kurds first? That’s their issue.”

The envoy stressed that the current US strategy offers a narrow but real chance at stability.