DAMASCUS: Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa met the new head of the US military’s Central Command Admiral Brad Cooper in Damascus on Friday, his office and CENTCOM said.
The United States has for years maintained a troop presence at a series of bases in Syria as part of efforts against the Islamic State jihadist group, which overran swathes of Syria and neighboring Iraq in 2014.
“The meeting addressed prospects for cooperation in the political and military fields in the service of shared interests and consolidating the foundations of security and stability in Syria and the region,” the Syrian presidency said in a statement.
The meeting, which was joined by US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack, “reflected the positive atmosphere and shared interest in strengthening the strategic partnership and expanding channels of communication between Damascus and Washington,” it added.
A CENTCOM statement said Cooper and Barrack thanked Sharaa for “his support to counter Daesh in Syria,” using another acronym for the jihadist group.
“Eliminating the Daesh threat in Syria will reduce the risk of an Daesh attack on the US homeland while working toward President (Donald) Trump’s vision of a prosperous Middle East and a stable Syria at peace with itself and its neighbors,” CENTCOM said.
They also “offered praise to Syria for supporting the recovery of US citizens inside the country,” it added.
Several US citizens went missing or were killed during Syria’s civil war which erupted in 2011.
In April, the Pentagon announced it would roughly halve the number of troops it has in the country to fewer than 1,000 in the coming months as part of a “consolidation” of US forces.
Barrack said in June that the military would eventually close all but one of its bases in Syria.
The United States periodically targets the jihadist group’s remnants with raids or strikes to prevent its resurgence.
Cooper was appointed in early August to lead CENTCOM, the US military command responsible for the Middle East.
Earlier this month, he was in Israel on his first visit to the US ally since taking up post, the Israeli military said.
Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria since the overthrow of longtime ruler Bashar Assad in December, despite opening an unprecedented dialogue with the Islamist transitional authorities.
Syrian president meets new chief of US CENTCOM
https://arab.news/rfhct
Syrian president meets new chief of US CENTCOM
Syria’s growth accelerates as sanctions ease, refugees return
- Economy grows much faster than World Bank’s 1% estimate, fueling plans for currency’s relaunch
NEW YORK: Syria’s economy is growing much faster than the World Bank’s 1 percent estimate for 2025 as refugees flow back after the end of a 14-year civil war, fueling plans for the relaunch of the country’s currency and efforts to build a new Middle East financial hub, central bank Governor AbdulKader Husrieh has said.
Speaking via video link at a conference in New York, Husrieh also said he welcomed a deal with Visa to establish digital payment systems and added that the country is working with the International Monetary Fund to develop methods to accurately measure economic data to reflect the resurgence.
The Syrian central bank chief, who is helping guide the war-torn country’s reintegration into the global economy after the fall of Bashar Assad’s regime about a year ago, described the repeal of many US sanctions against Syria as “a miracle.”
The US Treasury on Nov. 10 announced a 180-day extension of the suspension of the so-called Caesar sanctions against Syria; lifting them entirely requires approval by the US Congress.
Husrieh said that based on discussions with US lawmakers, he expects the sanctions to be repealed by the end of 2025, ending “the last episode of the sanctions.”
“Once this happens, this will give comfort to our potential correspondent banks about dealing with Syria,” he said.
Husrieh also said that Syria was working to revamp regulations aimed at combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism, which he said would provide further assurances to international lenders.
Syria’s central bank has recently organized workshops with banks from the US, Turkiye, Jordan and Australia to discuss due diligence in reviewing transactions, he added.
Husrieh said that Syria is preparing to launch a new currency in eight note denominations and confirmed plans to remove two zeroes from them in a bid to restore confidence in the battered pound.
“The new currency will be a signal and symbol for this financial liberation,” Husrieh said. “We are glad that we are working with Visa and Mastercard,” Husrieh said.
