Syria’s foreign minister says lifting sanctions is ‘key’ to restoring stability | News
Asaad al-Shaibani also says that Syria’s new constitution will represent all communities in the country.
Syria’s new foreign minister said his country hopes to follow in the footsteps of economic powers such as Singapore and Saudi Arabia as it begins to slowly rebuild after nearly 14 years civil war.
“We need the help of the international community to help us in this new experiment,” Asaad al-Shaibani said at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. He emphasized that the Syrian transitional government is already working on energy partnerships with several Gulf states.
He also promised that the new Syrian constitution would represent all communities in the country and reiterated calls for the easing of international sanctions, which continue to cripple the Syrian economy.
Speaking at a televised event with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, al-Shaibani said that “the big challenge is economic sanctions. We inherited a lot of problems from the Assad regime… but the removal of economic sanctions is essential for the stability of Syria.”
Although some Western nations have moved to rebuild ties with Damascus since former President Bashar al-Assad banishthey remain wary of the country’s new rulers, led by the former Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) rebel group.
“We are constantly asked how to guarantee rights [this or] those groups and how to guarantee women’s rights – in Syria we will all be under the Constitution and under the rule of law,” al-Shaibani said.
A committee of experts will be established to draft a new constitution – a process that could take some time up to four years – and will cover all “various groups of Syria” including women, al-Shaibani said.
Earlier this month, al-Shaibani traveled to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, during which he discussed strengthening ties and trade.
Qatar has committed to initially supply Syria with 200 megawatts of electricity and gradually increase the amount, the Gulf country’s prime minister said during a recent visit to Damascus.
