Syrias foreign minister urges US to lift sanctions during visit to Qatar | News [Video]

Syria’s new Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani has called on the United States to lift crippling sanctions on his country, as he visited Qatar as part of a regional trip to seek support after the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

Following a meeting with Qatar’s prime minister on Sunday, al-Shaibani told reporters that US sanctions on Syria were an obstacle to the war-torn country’s rapid recovery.

“These sanctions constitute a barrier and an obstacle to the rapid recovery and development of the Syrian people who await services and partnerships from other countries,” he said.

“We reiterate our calls for the United States to lift these sanctions, which have now become against the Syrian people rather than what they previously were: imposed sanctions on the al-Assad regime.”

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the Gulf country’s premier also met with Syria’s Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra and the new head …