Senior Analyst, U.S. Program @crisisgroup. Usual caveats.

Joined April 2009
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My latest in @ForeignPolicy. Trump has promised to lift sanctions on Syria. I explain why it's not that easy to fully end the sanctions—and their effects. foreignpolicy.com/2025/06/02…
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26 Jun 2025
Washington was right to impose consequences on settler violence. But sanctions cannot be truly effective as long as they are a surrogate for a broader policy on Israel’s settlements. 4/5
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26 Jun 2025
Policymakers in the United States and elsewhere should learn from this experience when deploying sanctions in the future. 5/5
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26 Jun 2025
Tune in to my interview on the @CBC with Canadian journalism legend Susan Ormiston. I discuss with the great @edwardfishman and @AndreaCharron whether economic punishment actually shapes behavior — or just creates diplomatic noise.🎙️ Listen here: cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-6…

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Delaney retweeted
22 Jun 2025
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei took office in 1989. Over that period, the IRI's security doctrine has been shaped around three key elements: Regional networks. Missile development. A nuclear program dialed up to threshold status. 9 months - and 9 days - that upended that strategy. 🧵
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Delaney retweeted
U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to end sanctions on Syria is welcome news. But as @delaneysimon explains, challenges loom in rolling them back. crisisgroup.org/middle-east-…
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Delaney retweeted
“Past administrations removed sanctions on pariah nations incrementally, and always in exchange for painstakingly negotiated actions from the sanctioned parties.” @delaneysimon explains the novelty of Trump’s approach to lifting sanctions on Syria. foreignpolicy.com/2025/06/02…
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Delaney retweeted
Lifting of SST - if/if true - is a massive deal. But getting the private sector and banking world to go back to Syria will require @treasury and @StateDept to signal that it’s a meaningful and long term shift that won’t immediately yo yo back to have a meaningful impact on #Syria
BREAKING — US Special Envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack in Damascus: —Trump will declare that Syria is not a state sponsor of terror: “Thank God, the issue of state sponsor of terrorism is gone with the Assad regime being finished” —US wants Israel-Syria peace, believes it’s “solvable problem” —“I’d say we need to start a with just a non-aggression agreement, talk about boundaries and borders.” —“We help not by dictating from the top but by freeing people from the bottom to do what they do best, inshalla”. —“Our message to everybody is that the Middle East has been misunderstood and confused for too long. So if we can weave the threads of a new tapestry by helping, not dictating, that's this president's goal.”
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Delaney retweeted
22 May 2025
Negotiations start today at the Security Council on whether or not to lift the arms embargo on South Sudan. In the @The_EastAfrican last week, @jongethon and I argue why lifting it after recent escalations would be reckless. theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/opi…
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Delaney retweeted
21 May 2025
I'm eager to see sanctions relief in Syria, and hopeful we're headed that way. But let's not let the sanctions debate obscure other economic priorities that must proceed in parallel: building up local institutions, bolstering rule of law, & ramping up humanitarian aid.
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16 May 2025
I told @MEDialogues how ending sanctions on Syria will not be easy. Trump has a heavy bureaucratic and political lift ahead. "If he stays the course, he will have made Syria’s future far brighter than it would have been otherwise. I hope he does.”
From billion-dollar deals to lifting sanctions on #Syria. What were the key takeaways from #Trump's visit to #SaudiArabia, the #UAE, and #Qatar? #MEDThisWeekispionline.it/en/publication…
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Delaney retweeted
From billion-dollar deals to lifting sanctions on #Syria. What were the key takeaways from #Trump's visit to #SaudiArabia, the #UAE, and #Qatar? #MEDThisWeekispionline.it/en/publication…
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Delaney retweeted
15 May 2025
So it begins. I’ve also heard folks in Congress are beginning to draft language for repealing different sanctions they’ve passed previously, including Caesar.
Treasury is working with our colleagues at the State Department and National Security Council to execute the President’s direction on Syria sanctions. We look forward to implementing the necessary authorizations that would be critical to bringing new investment into Syria. Treasury's actions can help rebuild Syria's economy, financial sector, and infrastructure and could put the country on a path to a bright, prosperous, and stable future.
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14 May 2025
I told the @washingtonpost that Trump's decision to lift sanctions on Syria, seemingly without conditions, is unprecedented. Full relief won't be easy. “President Trump has a tough road ahead to make good on this commitment, but he should persevere.” washingtonpost.com/world/202…
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Delaney retweeted
A few reflections on Trump's "cessation" of sanctions on Syria; what it might mean and what it doesn't mean. Either way, this is very much worth celebrating! We deserve a fresh start. Congratulations everyone!!
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