US, Britain remove sanctions on Syria's president

By Sam Tabahriti and Daphne Psaledakis

LONDON/WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States and Britain removed sanctions on Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa on Friday, a day after the United Nations Security Council did the same ahead of his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump next week, with the European Union confirming it would follow suit.

Washington and London also lifted sanctions on Syria's interior minister Anas Khattab, according to notices on their websites.

Both men had formerly been subject to financial sanctions targeted at Islamic State and al Qaeda, with the United States designating them Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

A European Union spokesperson said on Friday the U.N. decision would be reflected in EU measures.

Britain lifted some sanctions on Syria in April, while the bloc lifted its economic sanctions in May, but restrictions related to arms and security remain in place.

"We remain committed to supporting a peaceful and inclusive Syrian-led and Syrian-owned transition to help build a better future for all Syrians," a European Commission spokesperson said.

Washington has been urging the 15-member Security Council for months to ease Syria sanctions. Trump announced a major U.S. policy shift in May when he said he would lift U.S. sanctions on Syria.

MEETING AT THE WHITE HOUSE

The Republican president is due to meet Sharaa at the White House on Monday, the first such visit by a Syrian head of state.

Trump has sought good relations with Sharaa. In June he revoked most U.S. sanctions against Syria, and Trump met with the Syrian leader when he visited Saudi Arabia last May.

Since seizing power from Bashar al-Assad last December, Sharaa has made a series of foreign trips as his transitional government seeks to re-establish Syria's ties with world powers that had shunned Damascus during Assad's rule.

Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani, became Syria's president in January after insurgent forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham ousted Assad in a lightning offensive.

Sharaa, once a senior figure in HTS and previously affiliated with al Qaeda, was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2013 and the U.N. and Britain in 2014, which included a travel ban, asset freeze and arms embargo.

The U.N. Security Council lifted those measures on Thursday, citing a lack of active ties between HTS and al Qaeda.

The Syrian government did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday, which is not a working day in Syria.

(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti and Sarah Young in London, Alessandro Parodi in Paris, additional reporting by Maya Gebeily in Beirut; editing by Michael Holden, Alexandra Hudson and Deepa Babington)