Beirut (AP) - Saudi Arabia and Qatar said on Sunday that they will pay Syria’s outstanding debts to the World Bank, which could restore international institutions to the war-torn countries.

A joint statement from Saudi Arabia and Qatar's finance ministries said it decided to pay Syria nearly $15 million in debt at a meeting held in Washington this month by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Syria's Foreign Ministry thanked two oil and gas-rich countries for repaying their debts, saying it has opened the way for cooperation to recover and rebuild, a 14-year conflict that killed half a million people and caused widespread damage in the country.

Since the fall of the Bashar Assad government in early December, an insurgent group led by Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham attacked his power location in Damascus, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which has been a major supporter of the country's new leadership.

The United Nations estimated in 2017 that rebuilding Syria would cost at least $250 billion. Now, some experts say that the number can reach at least $400 billion.

Saudi-Qatari's joint statement said the payment of Syria's loans will promote World Bank support and activities in Syria that have been stalled for more than 14 years. The statement added that loan payments will allow Syria to allocate funds from the World Bank for "significant sectors" in the near future. It does not specify in detail.

Syria's infrastructure suffered extensive damage in the conflict that broke out in March 2011. Last month, Qatar began supplying natural gas to Syria through Jordan to alleviate the long-term power cuts common in much of the country.

The main obstacle to Syria's development projects is the Western sanctions imposed on the country more than a decade ago, mainly targeting Assad's government and officials.

The Trump administration has not formally recognized the new Syrian government led by the president and HTS leader Ahmad al-Sharaa. HTS remains a designated terrorist organization in the United States, and the sanctions imposed on Damascus under Assad's leadership remain.

However, Washington has eased some restrictions. In January, the U.S. Treasury issued a general license that lasted six months, which authorized certain transactions with the Syrian government, including some energy sales and incidental transactions.

Meanwhile, the EU has begun to ease some energy and transportation sanctions on Syria and bank restrictions on Syria, suspending measures against oil, gas and electricity, as well as transportation in the air sector.

The British government said on Thursday it would impose sanctions on more than a dozen Syrian entities, including government departments and media.