Syria slams ‘thuggish’ US behaviour over new sanctions
Damascus, June 18 (IANS) The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Wednesday said the new set of sanctions imposed by the US against the Damascus government revealed Washington’s “thuggish behaviour”.
The latest sanctions, provisioned by the Caesar Act, show the violation of the US administration to all international laws and norms and the “low level to which American officials have reached”, Xinhua news agency quoted the Ministry as saying.
Speaking about human rights in Syria, the US administration “surpasses the ugliest forms of lies and hypocrisy in its policies that support terrorism and bloodshed in Syria”, it said.
Upping the sanctions against the Syrian people adds a new dimension and a new shape for the terrorism in Syria.
The Ministry stressed that the Syrian people and army will not allow “the practitioners of black crimes in the White House to revive their failing scheme in Syria”.
On Wednesday, the US announced massive sanctions against Syria, in an effort to further deprive the revenue of the Syrian government.
The latest sanctions have been imposed against 39 individuals and entities including Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his wife, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced in a statement.
Pompeo alleged designated people and companies “played a key role in obstructing a peaceful political solution to the conflict”.
“Anyone doing business with the Assad regime, no matter where in the world they are, is potentially exposed to travel restrictions and financial sanctions,” the statement said.
He noted that Wednesday’s action was the beginning of a sustained campaign of economic and political pressure against Syria.
Earlier this month, the Syrian Foreign Ministry said that the US was practicing “economic terrorism” against Syria, claiming the sanctions under the Caesar Act are based on lies and fabricated claims.
UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen on Tuesday said sanctions by the US and the European Union have helped push Syria’s economy to the brink.
–IANS
ksk/
