Damascus, July 8 (SANA)Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani said Wednesday that Syria has closed a “dark chapter” in its history following the US decision to initiate the removal of the State Sponsor of Terrorism designation that had been in place since 1979, expressing gratitude to the United States for the move.

“Following the directives of President Ahmad al-Sharaa, we have closed a dark chapter in Syria’s history by lifting the designation imposed on it due to the policies of the deposed regime in 1979,” al-Shaibani said in a statement on X.

ضمن توجيهات فخامة رئيس الجمهورية أحمد الشرع، أغلقنا صفحة سوداء في تاريخ سوريا برفع التصنيف الذي فرض عليها بسبب سياسات النظام البائد 1979كل الشكر والتقدير للولايات المتحدة بقيادة الرئيس ترامب على هذا القرار، ولصديقي وزير الخارجية ماركو روبيو وللسفير العزيز توم باراك ولكل من وقف…pic.twitter.com/yhaEUXSenR

“Our sincere thanks and appreciation to the United States, led by President Trump, for this decision, and to my friend Secretary of State Marco Rubio, to the esteemed Ambassador Tom Barrack, and to everyone who stood by Syria,” he added.

The announcement came following a meeting between President al-Sharaa and President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara.

Later on, President al-Sharaa received a letter from President Trump informing him of his decision to rescind the State Sponsor of Terrorism designation for Syria, according to a statement from the Syrian presidency.

In the letter, President Trump wrote: “I promised to remove all barriers stopping you from rebuilding your country, and very soon, you will finally be able to do so.”

Trump’s notification to Congress on Wednesday will be followed by a 45-day review period before the delisting takes effect.