US gives Syria list of conditions

Promises to provide partial sanctions relief

WASHINGTON/BEIRUT:

The United States has handed Syria a list of conditions that it wants Damascus to fulfill in exchange for partial sanctions relief, six people familiar with the matter told Reuters, including ensuring foreigners are not in senior governing roles.

US Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Levant and Syria Natasha Franceschi gave the list of demands to Syrian foreign minister Asaad al-Shibani at an in-person meeting on the sidelines of a Syria donor conference in Brussels on March 18, according to two of the people - a US official and a Syrian source familiar with the matter.

Among the conditions placed by the United States are Syria's destruction of any remaining chemical weapons stores and cooperation on counter-terrorism, the two US officials, the Syrian source and both sources in Washington said. Another demand was making sure foreign fighters are not installed in senior roles in Syria's governing structure, the US officials and one of the sources in Washington said.

Syria has already appointed some foreign ex-rebels, including Uyghurs, a Jordanian and a Turk, to its defense ministry - a move that alarmed foreign governments. Washington also asked Syria to appoint a liaison to assist US efforts to find Austin Tice, the US journalist who went missing in Syria over a decade ago, according to the two US officials and both sources in Washington.

In return for fulfilling all the demands, Washington would provide some sanctions relief, all six sources said. One specific action would be a two-year extension of an existing exemption for transactions with Syrian governing institutions and possibly the issuance of another exemption. The US would also issue a statement supporting Syria's territorial integrity, the source said.