Türkiye’s trade minister said Thursday that Türkiye will help the Syrian government develop institutional capacity and infrastructure deficiencies.
On an official two-day visit to Syria’s capital Damascus on Wednesday and Thursday along with Turkish businesspeople, chamber, and union leaders, Ömer Bolat held bilateral and delegation meetings with his counterparts on various issues, including trade, customs, transportation, investment, finance and banking, contracting, and energy.
He met with Syria’s Economy and Industry Minister Nidal al-Sha’ar, Finance Minister Mohamed Yasser Barnia, Transportation Minister Yarub Suleyman Badr, and land and sea ports chief Kuteybe Ahmed Badawi.
Congratulating Syria on its Dec. 8 revolution last year, which saw the end of the Assad regime, Bolat said Türkiye felt the second-largest impact from Syria’s 13-year civil war.
“President (Recep Tayyip) Erdoğan of the Republic of Türkiye and our government, our state, and our nation have stood by the Syrian people as a whole and have been very pleased with this revolution. It is our greatest prayer that Syria, as a government, state, and nation, will develop and grow in a strong stability and peace,” he said.
“Türkiye and Syria have a historic opportunity to develop their relations in a multi-dimensional manner in the new period. We emphasized that we are open to cooperation with the business world in a wide range of areas, from investment to services, infrastructure, trade in goods, in line with Syria’s needs and demands,” Bolat said on X about his meeting with al-Sha’ar.
On his meeting with Badr, he wrote: “Based on the importance of strong transport and logistics networks for a strong economy, we evaluated the issues of faster and more efficient transitions through customs gates between our countries and the initiation of transit passages that will make Syria a transit base. As a continuation of the vision set forth by the historical Hejaz Road, we will continue to take the necessary steps to strengthen our transport networks with Syria.”
Underlining that Türkiye will stand by Syria with its experience and production capability, Bolat said during his meeting with businesspeople from the Damascus Chamber of Commerce: “Infrastructure, economic legislation, and institutional capacity are now being reestablished in Syria, and the government of Türkiye will support the development of institutional capacity and infrastructure deficiencies to the extent requested by the Syrian government. Like all ministries in Türkiye, we have been instructed by our president to support Syria. The establishment of a new, free Syria here will be your work and we, as your Muslim brothers and neighbors, have the duty to support you.”
“Considering that the economic integrations established between neighboring countries are stronger, we evaluated steps to be taken for the further development of the commercial and economic relations of the two neighboring countries in the upcoming period,” Bolat said on X.
“We are always ready to share our experience and knowledge in all areas, as well as its production and technological capabilities with our Syrian brothers. We will grow stronger together in all areas, including customs, logistics, rehabilitation of industrial zones, joint investments, and a strengthened financial system.”