The United States has tabled a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council seeking the removal of sanctions on Syrian envoy Ahmed al-Sharaa as he prepares for a planned visit to the White House. The proposal would also strip sanctions from Syria’s Interior Minister, Anas Khattab. No date has yet been set for a Security Council vote on the measure.

For the draft to pass, at least nine of the 15 council members must vote in favour and none of the five permanent members—Russia, China, France, the United Kingdom and the United States—may use their veto. Washington has been pressing the Security Council for months to relax the penalties imposed on Syria.

Al-Sharaa’s trip represents a notable diplomatic step after years of violent conflict in Syria. The article notes that, after a 13-year civil war, President Bashar al-Assad was removed in December by insurgent forces led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), an organisation previously identified as the Nusra Front and once recognised as al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria until 2016. HTS has appeared on the UN sanctions list since May 2014, subject to a travel ban, asset freezes and an arms embargo, and both al-Sharaa and Khattab are named among sanctioned figures.

Even with existing restrictions, the Security Council committee has frequently issued travel exemptions for al-Sharaa, making his likely attendance in the United States possible even if the draft resolution is not adopted beforehand. The initiative comes after a shift in US policy signalled in May by President Donald Trump, indicating a willingness to lift certain US sanctions on Syria.

UN sanctions monitors have reported a lack of "active ties" this year between al Qaeda and HTS, a finding Washington cites in support of easing limits. The draft resolution is part of wider diplomatic efforts to reintegrate Syria into international engagement after prolonged isolation and conflict.