https://arab.news/z5wae
- Ahmad Al-Sharaa tells session in Riyadh he wants to rebuild Syria by investments
- Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman attended the dialogue session
RIYADH: Syria has attracted overseas investment totaling around $28 billion so far this year, President Ahmad Al-Sharaa said on Wednesday at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh.
Sharaa said in a session attended by ’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that Syrian laws have been amended to allow foreign investors to transfer funds out of the country.
“We want to rebuild Syria via investments,” Al-Sharaa said, adding the world can benefit from it as a “trade corridor.”
Al-Sharaa led opposition fighters to overthrow Bashar Al-Assad late last year, bringing an end to 14 years of civil war.
Al-Sharaa has conducted a series of foreign trips as his transitional government seeks to re-establish Syria’s ties with world powers that shunned Damascus during Assad’s rule.
In May, Riyadh hosted a historic meeting between Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Al-Sharaa and US President Donald Trump, who praised Al-Sharaa and said Washington would lift all sanctions on Syria to help give the country a chance to rebuild.
Despite Trump’s pledge and widespread exemptions now granted to Syria, the toughest sanctions — known as the Caesar sanctions — require a repeal from the US Congress.
US lawmakers have been divided on the issue, but are expected to make a decision by the end of the year.
While Syria has already drawn international interest in major development projects, a full repeal is expected to trigger increased appetite for investments.
In August, Syria signed 12 investment deals worth $14 billion, including infrastructure, transportation and real estate projects aimed at reviving the war-damaged economy.
A World Bank report predicted the cost of Syria’s reconstruction at $216 billion, saying the figure was a “conservative best estimate.”