Damascus, Syria – Syria and Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that they are aiming to boost economic cooperation for mutual benefit and create jobs for Syrians after Western sanctions imposed on war-torn countries were eased earlier this month.
The announcement came during a visit to Damascus by Prince Faisal bin Fahan, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia, who met Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa and other Syrian officials.
The easing of Western sanctions is likely to pave the way for foreign investors, who have been under civil war since March 2011.
The Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister said earlier this month that easing sanctions by the US, European Union and the UK would help “revitalize the Syrian economy, which has been stagnant for decades.”
Prince Faisal, who leads the economic and business delegation, said Saudi businessmen will visit Syria in the near future to discuss opportunities in areas such as oil, infrastructure, information technology, communications and agriculture.
He added that Saudi Arabia and Qatar will provide financial assistance to Syrian public sector employees without providing details.
“I argue that the kingdom will become a major state among the nations standing by Syria while marching for reconstruction and economic revival,” Prince Faisal said.
Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al-Sabani said his country and Saudi Arabia have entered a new era of cooperation.
The meeting comes two days after Syria signed an agreement with a consortium of Qatar, Turkey and US companies to develop a 5,000 megawatt energy project to activate much of its war-covered power grid.
Alshara met President Donald Trump in Saudi Arabia earlier this month.