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U.S., Europe Consider Boycott of Syrian Oil
(Washington Post) Mary Beth Sheridan and Alice Fordham - The U.S. and European governments have begun to discuss whether to escalate sanctions against President Bashar al-Assad by targeting Syria's oil industry, as officials on both continents are looking at stepped-up measures to pressure Assad. While the U.S. has little economic leverage on Syria, having cut off most trade years ago, the Europeans buy about half of Syria's oil. France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands are the biggest customers. Syria's petroleum exports of 150,000 barrels per day account for one-third of government revenue. "If these [sanctions] are implemented, does it immediately mean the regime stops killing? No," said Andrew Tabler, a Syria expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. "But does it mean several months from now the regime runs out of money? Yes." The U.S. ambassador in Damascus, Robert Ford, said this week that previous sanctions were starting to bite. "More and more business people, especially Sunni business people - an important pillar of the regime's support - we do see them slowly but surely shifting sides."