By Stella Youssef
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The United States House of Representatives passed on Feb. 14, a bill that blocks the U.S. from normalizing relations with any government in Syria that is led by Bashar al-Assad. The bill came in response to efforts by some countries in the Middle East to normalize ties with the government of Bashar al-Assad following the devastating Feb.6 earthquake that hit southern Turkey and parts of Syria in 2023.
The bill was first introduced by Joe Wilson, U.S. Representative of the second District of South Carolina, Vicente Gonzalez, Michael McCaul, Brendan Boyle, French Hill, Steve Cohen, Carlos Gimenez and Amata Radewagen in May 2023 after the Arab League reintegrated Syria into the bloc on May 7, 2023, after more than 10 years of suspension.
“Countries choosing to normalize with the unrepentant mass murderer and drug trafficker, Bashar al-Assad, are headed down the wrong path. The Assad regime is illegitimate and poses a threat to peace and prosperity in the region,” Wilson said in a statement at the time.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul said, “Assad, and his Russian and Iranian backers, continue to commit horrific acts against the Syrian people and undermine regional security. They must be held accountable for these crimes, not welcomed back unconditionally by the international community.”
The U.S. rejected any normalization with the Syrian government without taking serious steps towards a political solution to the Syrian crisis that is accepted by the Syrian people and international community.
Two days before the Arab Summit that was held on May 17, 2023, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives lost no time to pass ‘Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act of 2023.’
In this regard, Samir al-Taqi, a researcher at the Washington-based Middle East Institute, said at the time, the bill ensures the extension of U.S. sanctions for several years, “thus blocking any party that wants to provide financial support to the Syrian government.”
Additionally, on Sep. 27, 2023, Republican U.S. Senators Jim Risch, ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Marco Rubio, also introduced the Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act bill to counter normalization with the Syrian government and extend the sanctions imposed by the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act to 2032.
In late 2023, the U.S. Rep. French Hill in an op-ed in The Hill called on the international community to “reject the Arab League’s fledgling attempt to bring Assad back into the norms of international order and diplomacy,” and come up with a plan to bring a political settlement, security, and peace to Syria that ends “transnational criminal drug manufacturing distribution.”
The bill states, “not to recognize or normalize relations with any Government of Syria that is led by Bashar al-Assad due to the Assad regime’s prior and ongoing crimes against the Syrian people.”
The bill also opposes recognition or normalization of relations by other governments with “any Government of Syria that is led by Bashar Al-Assad,” extends existing sanctions, and blocks reconstruction activities in areas under the control of Bashar al-Assad.
On Feb. 13, at a session at the U.S. House of Representatives to discuss the Act, Joe Wilson condemned “merciless slaughter, systemic rape,… and chemical warfare used against the people of Syria” carried out by the Syrian government for the past 13 years.
Wilson slammed the “disgraceful” readmission of the Syrian government into the League. “To do business with Assad is the normalization of death and depravity, and a contrast to the moral standards of American allies who are members of the Arab league.”
Ahead of the vote on the bill on Feb. 13, McCaul told The National, “With this bill, Congress is sending a message that it remains committed to holding Assad and his backers accountable and ensuring justice for the Syrian people, in the face of creeping normalisation with this war criminal.”
In addition, the bill requires the Department of State to provide Congress with annual report “to counter foreign government efforts to normalize relations with the Bashar al-Assad regime.”
The bill extends the Caesar Act and includes individuals and entities that provide support to the Baath party and the Syrian People’s Assembly (Parliament).
The Assad Regime Anti-Normalization Act passed the House with 389 votes in favor and 32 against, which now will move to the Senate for another vote.
If the bill is adopt by the Senate, it will need to be signed by President Joe Biden before becoming a law.