Foreign Minister Bob Carr has announced new Australian sanctions on Syria to raise the pressure on the Assad regime to end the bloodshed.
The sanctions restrict or prohibit trade between Syria and Australia in oil, petroleum, financial services, telecommunications and precious metals.
They’re in addition to an existing arms embargo and financial and travel sanctions on individuals and entities associated with the regime of Bashar al-Assad.
Senator Carr says the sanctions are aimed at increasing the pressure on the regime, which has refused to abide by UN-Arab League envoy Kofi Annan’s six-point peace plan.
“The Assad regime continues to show its unwillingness to negotiate a ceasefire and bring an end to Syria’s bloodshed,” Senator Carr said in a statement on Monday.
“These sanctions reflect Australia’s condemnation of the Assad regime, and our continued efforts to help bring Syria to the negotiating table.”
Syrian activists reported another 40 people were killed in violence around the country on Sunday, as the Assad regime continued its crackdown on the popular uprising.
Opposition activists say the conflict has killed 14,000 people, most of them civilians, over the past 15 months.
Senator Carr says Australia, the European Union and the United States have already imposed sanctions on Syria, and Australia continues to push for unified international action through the United Nations.
Australia will also consider additional humanitarian assistance for the Syrian people.
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