President Donald Trump announced plans to remove Syria from the US State Sponsors of Terrorism list during a meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the NATO summit in Ankara on July 8. Syria has held that designation since 1979, making this one of the most significant US foreign policy pivots in the Middle East in decades.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has already notified Congress, kicking off a 45-day review period. Unless lawmakers intervene, Syria’s terror designation gets wiped clean.
From sanctions to handshakes
Trump signed an executive order on June 30, 2025, lifting extensive US sanctions on Syria effective July 1. Al-Sharaa and his political organization, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), were removed from various terror lists back in November 2025. The delisting from the State Sponsors of Terrorism list is the final domino.
When asked whether he’d proceed with the delisting, Trump was characteristically blunt. “I think I will, yeah. Why wouldn’t I? He’s done a great job,” he said of al-Sharaa.
