Syria welcomes proposals to link its ports to Gulf states through Iraq and expects “practical” steps to develop an alternative transit route to the Strait of Hormuz, its Transport Minister told The National on Wednesday.
Yarub Badr said Syria was developing roads and railway lines under its own steam but would “welcome every initiative” as Gulf states work on strategic plans after the Iran war.
Analysts say the proposed corridor could give the UAE a key role in reshaping regional trade. Regional efforts led by the UAE and Saudi Arabia are under way to promote and develop transport links in Syria.
The Iran war has thrust the potential Syria route into the limelight after the Strait of Hormuz was blocked, affecting supplies worldwide. It coincides with a Syrian investment push to rebuild its economy, devastated by a 13-year civil war.
“We welcome every initiative,” Mr Badr told The National at the Syria-British Business Council conference in Damascus. The minister said his country expects "practical steps", but added that Syria has already started developing roads and sections of railways "with our own capabilities". He said the World Bank has allocated only “slight” support for the rehabilitation of one railway link.
“We are waiting for the [interest] to be translated into projects,” Mr Badr said. "Throughout history, Syria has played a fundamental role in linking trade between east and west."
Syrian official media said the head of the country's customs authority met representatives of the UAE and Abu Dhabi Ports Group last week.
It said they discussed the development of ports, border crossings and free zones in Syria, as well as proposals for the Al Tanf land crossing between Syria and Iraq. AD Ports did not respond to a request for comment from The National.
A UAE-linked route through Iraq into Syria could place Emirati operators inside the mechanics of Syria’s new economy before other players consolidate their positions, said Irina Tsukerman, a geopolitical analyst in New York.
This would deepen the UAE's logistics presence across the Arab world and "secure a position inside any future architecture linking the Gulf to Syria, Turkey and the Eastern Mediterranean", she told The National.
Following the toppling of Bashar Al Assad's regime and the lifting of western sanctions last year, Gulf states have moved quickly to invest in Syria’s post-Assad future, launching diplomatic, financial and infrastructure support.
"The real significance [of the plan] is that Syria is being reinserted into regional supply chains, with the UAE positioning itself as a key investor and logistics partner in that process," said Oliver Cornock, editor in chief of Oxford Business Group.
"If implemented successfully, the corridor would strengthen the Middle East's growing network of overland trade routes, giving businesses greater resilience by reducing dependence on single maritime chokepoints."
In April, Turkey, Jordan and Syria agreed to develop a “north-south” transport corridor, with a modernised motorway system that will eventually be linked to the Saudi railway network. Riyadh announced that a feasibility study for the railway section was to be completed by the end of this year.
The UAE, meanwhile, has accelerated its push into Syria. In May, both countries convened their first bilateral business forum, with a large Emirati delegation of officials and businessmen arriving in the Syrian capital.
One major development is the start of Dubai ports major DP World's operations in Syria's Tartus port, which includes about $800 million in infrastructure upgrades.
Mohammed Soliman, a technology analyst and senior fellow at the Washington-based Middle East Institute think tank, said the UAE "understood early" that Syria's geography – sitting at the intersection of Turkey, Iraq, the Mediterranean and the Gulf – makes it valuable as a transit corridor, particularly now with vulnerabilities in maritime chokepoints.
"The Tartus port development gives them leverage in the eastern Mediterranean and access to markets they previously couldn't reach," he told The National.
