Report — US, UAE discussed lifting Assad sanctions in exchange for break with Iran

The US and the United Arab Emirates have discussed with each other the possibility of lifting sanctions on Syrian President Bashar Assad if he peels himself away from Iran and cuts off weapons routes to Lebanon’s Hezbollah, five people familiar with the matter tell Reuters.

The conversations intensified in recent months, the sources say, driven by the possible expiry on Dec. 20 of sweeping US sanctions on Syria and by Israel’s campaign against Tehran’s regional network, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza and Iranian assets in Syria.

The discussions took place before anti-Assad rebels swept into Aleppo last week in their biggest offensive in Syria for years.

According to the sources, the new rebel advance is a signal of precisely the sort of weakness in Assad’s alliance with Iran that the Emirati and US initiative aims to exploit. But if Assad embraces Iranian help for a counter-offensive, that could also complicate efforts to drive a wedge between them, the sources say.

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi visited Syria on Sunday in a show of support for Assad, and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan spoke to Assad by phone about the latest developments over the weekend.