Latest news with #financialsupport
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Saudi Arabia says it will jointly fund Syria state salaries with Qatar
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has said that the kingdom and Qatar will offer joint financial support to state employees in Syria. His statements came on Saturday during a joint press conference with his Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shibani in Damascus. The two Gulf nations have been among the most important regional supporters of Syria's new authorities, who ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December after nearly 14 years of war. Saturday's statement did not provide details on the exact amount of the support for Syria's public sector. However, it comes after Syrian Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Bernieh said earlier in May that Qatar was going to provide Syria with $29m per month for an initial three months to pay civilian public sector worker salaries. The Reuters news agency had also reported that the United States had given its blessing to the Qatari initiative, which came a few days before President Donald Trump announced that sanctions on Syria imposed during the al-Assad regime would be lifted. The European Union has since also lifted sanctions on Syria. Further evidence of Saudi Arabian and Qatari support came in mid-May, when it was announced that the two countries had paid off Syria's debt to the World Bank, a sum of roughly $15m. Syria's new government, led by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, has sought to rebuild the country's diplomatic ties and convince wary Western states that he has turned his back on past ties with groups such as al-Qaeda. The Syrian leader has repeatedly disavowed extremism and expressed support for minorities, but incidents of violence that has led to hundreds of deaths continue to cause international trepidation – even as the government and al-Sharaa denounce the killings. Syria's new government has also made a concerted effort to solidify ties to Gulf Arab states who have begun to play a pivotal role in financing the reconstruction of Syria's war-ravaged infrastructure and reviving its Tuesday, the European Union announced it had adopted legal acts lifting all economic restrictive measures on Syria except those based on security grounds. It also removed 24 entities from the EU list of those subject to the freesing of funds and economic resources, including the Central Bank of Syria. And after Saudi Arabia and Qatar cleared Syria's debt to the World Bank, the US-based financial institution said that it would restart operations in the country following a 14-year pause. The World Bank has begun to prepare its first project in Syria, which will focus on improving electricity access – a key pillar for revitalising essential services like healthcare, education, and water supply. It also marked the start of expanded support to stabilise Syria and boost long-term growth. Syria's gradual re-integration into the global economy is in large part due to Trump's dramatic shift in Washington's policies towards the country. After announcing the lifting of US sanctions on May 13, Trump also became the first US president in 25 years to meet with a Syrian counterpart. The US had already removed a $10m reward for the capture of al-Sharaa, and the Syrian president has been able to travel internationally and meet world leaders, including in Saudi Arabia and France. Still, there is a lot to be done. A February report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimated that at current growth rates, Syria would need more than 50 years to return to the economic level it had before the war, and it called for massive investment to accelerate the process. The UNDP study said nine out of 10 Syrians now live in poverty, one-quarter are jobless and Syria's gross domestic product 'has shrunk to less than half of its value' in 2011, the year the war began.
Al Jazeera
5 hours ago
- Business
- Al Jazeera
Saudi Arabia says it will jointly fund Syria state salaries with Qatar
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has said that the kingdom and Qatar will offer joint financial support to state employees in Syria. His statements came on Saturday during a joint press conference with his Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shibani in Damascus. The two Gulf nations have been among the most important regional supporters of Syria's new authorities, who ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December after nearly 14 years of war. Saturday's statement did not provide details on the exact amount of the support for Syria's public sector. However, it comes after Syrian Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Bernieh said earlier in May that Qatar was going to provide Syria with $29m per month for an initial three months to pay civilian public sector worker salaries. The Reuters news agency had also reported that the United States had given its blessing to the Qatari initiative, which came a few days before President Donald Trump announced that sanctions on Syria imposed during the al-Assad regime would be lifted. The European Union has since also lifted sanctions on Syria. Further evidence of Saudi Arabian and Qatari support came in mid-May, when it was announced that the two countries had paid off Syria's debt to the World Bank, a sum of roughly $15m. Syria's new government, led by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, has sought to rebuild the country's diplomatic ties and convince wary Western states that he has turned his back on past ties with groups such as al-Qaeda. The Syrian leader has repeatedly disavowed extremism and expressed support for minorities, but incidents of violence that has led to hundreds of deaths continue to cause international trepidation – even as the government and al-Sharaa denounce the killings. Syria's new government has also made a concerted effort to solidify ties to Gulf Arab states who have begun to play a pivotal role in financing the reconstruction of Syria's war-ravaged infrastructure and reviving its economy. On Tuesday, the European Union announced it had adopted legal acts lifting all economic restrictive measures on Syria except those based on security grounds. It also removed 24 entities from the EU list of those subject to the freesing of funds and economic resources, including the Central Bank of Syria. And after Saudi Arabia and Qatar cleared Syria's debt to the World Bank, the US-based financial institution said that it would restart operations in the country following a 14-year pause. The World Bank has begun to prepare its first project in Syria, which will focus on improving electricity access – a key pillar for revitalising essential services like healthcare, education, and water supply. It also marked the start of expanded support to stabilise Syria and boost long-term growth. Syria's gradual re-integration into the global economy is in large part due to Trump's dramatic shift in Washington's policies towards the country. After announcing the lifting of US sanctions on May 13, Trump also became the first US president in 25 years to meet with a Syrian counterpart. The US had already removed a $10m reward for the capture of al-Sharaa, and the Syrian president has been able to travel internationally and meet world leaders, including in Saudi Arabia and France. Still, there is a lot to be done. A February report by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) estimated that at current growth rates, Syria would need more than 50 years to return to the economic level it had before the war, and it called for massive investment to accelerate the process. The UNDP study said nine out of 10 Syrians now live in poverty, one-quarter are jobless and Syria's gross domestic product 'has shrunk to less than half of its value' in 2011, the year the war began.
Asharq Al-Awsat
5 hours ago
- Business
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Saudi Arabia to Provide Financial Support with Qatar to Syria's State Employees, Saudi FM Says
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud said on Saturday that the kingdom will jointly offer with Qatar financial support to state employees in Syria. "The kingdom will provide with Qatar joint financial support to state employees in Syria," Bin Farhan said during a press conference with his Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shibani in Damascus. The Saudi FM referred to his country's role in helping to lift economic sanctions on Syria, saying that Saudi Arabia would continue to be one of the main backers to Syria on its path to reconstruction and economic recovery, Reuters reported. He said he was being accompanied by a high-level economic delegation from the kingdom to "hold talks with the Syrian side to bolster aspects of cooperation in various fields". Several visits would then follow in the coming days by Saudi businessmen to Syria to discuss investments in energy, agriculture, infrastructure and other sectors, he said. This comes few weeks after the US made an announcement on lifting sanctions on Syria's new government which overthrew former leader Bashar al-Assad in December. The European Union also recently lifted economic sanctions on Syria.
Khaleej Times
6 hours ago
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Saudi, Qatar to provide financial support to Syria's state employees, foreign minister says
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said on Saturday that the kingdom will jointly offer with Qatar financial support to state employees in Syria. "The kingdom will provide with Qatar joint financial support to state employees in Syria," Bin Farhan said during a press conference with his Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shibani in Damascus. He did not provide details on the size of the financial support to be provided by Riyadh and Doha. However, it echoes a similar move by Qatar to bankroll Syria's public sector. His visit comes few weeks after the US made a surprise announcement on lifting sanctions on Syria's government which overthrew former leader Bashar Al Assad in December. US President Donald Trump made the decision during his recent visit to the Middle East and said it was at the behest of Saudi Arabia's crown prince, whose country was a main advocate for the lifting of sanctions. The European Union also recently lifted economic sanctions on Syria. Bin Farhan referred to his country's role in helping to lift economic sanctions on Syria, saying that Saudi Arabia would continue to be one of the main backers to Syria in its path for reconstruction and economic recovery. He said he was being accompanied with a high-level economic delegation from the kingdom to "hold talks [with the Syrian side] to bolster aspects of cooperation in various fields". Several visits would then follow in the coming days by Saudi businessmen to Syria to discuss investments in energy, agriculture, infrastructure and other sectors, he said.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Saudi Arabia to provide financial support with Qatar to Syria's state employees, Saudi foreign minister says
CAIRO (Reuters) -Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud said on Saturday that the kingdom will jointly offer with Qatar financial support to state employees in Syria. "The kingdom will provide with Qatar joint financial support to state employees in Syria," Bin Farhan said during a press conference with his Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shibani in Damascus. He did not provide details on the size of the financial support to be provided by Riyadh and Doha. However, it echoes a similar move by Qatar to bankroll Syria's public sector. His visit comes few weeks after the U.S. made a surprise announcement on lifting sanctions on Syria's Islamist-led government which overthrew former leader Bashar al-Assad in December. U.S. President Donald Trump made the decision during his recent visit to the Middle East and said it was at the behest of Saudi Arabia's crown prince, whose country was a main advocate for the lifting of sanctions. The European Union also recently lifted economic sanctions on Syria. Bin Farhan referred to his country's role in helping to lift economic sanctions on Syria, saying that Saudi Arabia would continue to be one of the main backers to Syria on its path to reconstruction and economic recovery. He said he was being accompanied by a high-level economic delegation from the kingdom to "hold talks [with the Syrian side] to bolster aspects of cooperation in various fields". Several visits would then follow in the coming days by Saudi businessmen to Syria to discuss investments in energy, agriculture, infrastructure and other sectors, he said. The Syrian leadership is seeking to strengthen ties with Arab and Western leaders following the fall of Assad at the hands of Ahmed al-Sharaa's Sunni Islamist group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. It hopes a flow of aid and investments by Gulf neighbors following the lifting of economic sanctions would help it rebuild a state shattered by conflict. Syria's Sharaa is set to visit Kuwait on Sunday upon an invitation by Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah, Syrian state news agency SANA reported, citing a source in the Syrian president's office. Sharaa is set to discuss joint cooperation in various economic and political aspects in his first official visit to Kuwait, the source said.
