Leila Molana-Allen:
So, the international community, the Western governments, certainly, have essentially completely abandoned Syria.
Of course, since that red line that Barack Obama implemented in 2013, saying that if Assad used chemical weapons against his people, America would be forced to act, and then he used them several times, and nothing was done, there has really been very little action in Syria on the part of Western nations.
So people here feel very abandoned. Now, of course, there is an opportunity for Western nations to get involved in potentially a new Syria. There are three key issues here that condition their response. The first is the terrorism listing. Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham is currently on the terrorist list.
Secondly, sanctions and third, of course, Syrian refugees. So in terms of that terrorism listing, there have already been suggestions from the U.N. special envoy that they should reconsider that because Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham has been trying to liberalize in recent years and is currently saying we will continue to be liberal here and we will embrace all minorities here in Syria.
It will be very difficult for them to run a government in Syria if they are still on that terrorism list. Sanctions, similarly, Syria has suffered so much under these sanctions over the years. The economy is in dire straits here. People haven’t been able to rebuild their homes. No one has work.
Removing those sanctions would help the situation so much and bring prosperity quickly, which is the best chance of having peace here, because, when people have opportunity, of course, that’s what they support, rather than being disgruntled and potentially those divisions rising up again.
However, the problem with sanctions is, it’s not a switch. They are incredibly complicated and they are within the U.S. They are from the U.N. They are from the E.U. All different listings, all whether they’re financial, whether they’re to do with trade, whether they’re to do with borders.
So lots of engagement and agreements potentially going on behind the scenes as people discuss that. And, lastly, of course, the big motivator here, particularly for E.U. countries and Turkey, is the refugees. If they can create a peaceful situation in Syria that’s moving towards a genuinely liberal government, where the economy can recover and people can live good lives, they will then be able to fairly send Syrian refugees back home knowing it’s a safe place for them to live.
Many of them want to go home if it is a safe place for them to live. So that’s a huge motivator for those E.U. nations.