Syrian and Saudi officials announced this Saturday, February 7, five "strategic" agreements in aviation, telecommunications and water desalination. Riyadh and Damascus maintain that this alliance seeks to take a significant step in beginning Syria's economic reconstruction.

First modification: 02/07/2026 - 22:42

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Saudi Arabia and Syria signed several "strategic" agreements this Saturday, February 7. The projects – which include the launch of a joint airline and a $1 billion investment in developing a Syrian telecommunications network – seek to rebuild the Syrian economy, devastated by more than a decade of civil war, according to Syrian and Saudi officials.

Since the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Saudi Arabia has sought closer ties with a country that has long remained under the influence of Iran and Russia.

Among the deals is a Syrian-Saudi low-cost airline to be called 'Nas Syria', Talal al-Hilali, head of the Syrian Investment Authority, announced at a joint press conference with Saudi Investment Minister Khaled el-Faleh.

This agreement includes the construction of a new airport in Aleppo (northern Syria) with capacity for 12 million passengers and works on the existing airport.

One billion dollars for the SilkLink project

Another of the agreements includes the project called SilkLink, which seeks to develop telecommunications infrastructure and digital connectivity in Syria, explained the director of the Syrian Investment Authority. It will be possible thanks to an investment of approximately one billion dollars, specified the Syrian Minister of Telecommunications, Abdulsalam Haykal, at the signing ceremony.

Another pact targets water desalination and development cooperation.

Saudi Investment Minister Khaled el-Faleh also mentioned the creation of an investment fund for "important projects in Syria with the participation of the Saudi private sector." Khaled el-Faleh emphasized that both countries wish to forge a "strategic alliance."

The agreements target "vital sectors that affect people's lives and constitute essential pillars for the reconstruction of the Syrian economy," said Talal al-Hilali.

"This is just the beginning"

The United States definitively lifted its sanctions on Syria in December. In July, Riyadh had already signed investment and partnership agreements with Syria worth $6.4 billion.

"This is just the beginning," a Saudi Investment Ministry official told AFP on Saturday. That source assured that "investments are expected to extend to all sectors that are an urgent priority for the lives of Syrians."

US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack welcomed the deals, saying Wednesday that "strategic partnerships in aviation, infrastructure and telecommunications will significantly contribute to Syria's reconstruction efforts."

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Analyst Benjamin Fève, a specialist in the Syrian economy, is cautious about its impact. "In the short term, I would say that these agreements are more important as a political signal than as drivers of economic change," he points out, and considers that the selected projects "are not a priority and are insufficient to rebuild the country."

Syria has been subject to international sanctions since 1979, which were strengthened following the Bashar al-Assad regime's crackdown on pro-democracy protests in 2011, triggering a civil war.

The so-called "Caesar Law", adopted in 2019 during Donald Trump's first term and definitively repealed in December, imposed drastic US sanctions, which included the exclusion of Syria from the international banking system and the restriction of financial transactions in dollars.

The cost of rebuilding Syria could exceed $216 billion, according to the World Bank.

During a visit to Saudi Arabia in late October, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa declared that his country had attracted $28 billion in investment since the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

In April, Saudi Arabia and Qatar pledged to settle Syria's debt to the World Bank, which amounts to approximately $15 million.

With AFP

Article adapted from its original in French

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