Saudi Arabia signed a series of major investment and partnership agreements with Syria on Thursday, totaling $6.4 billion, as part of a broad effort to rebuild the country’s war-ravaged infrastructure and revive key economic sectors.
Ahmad al-Sharaa, an Islamist in a suit and tie © Mena Today
Saudi Arabia signed a series of major investment and partnership agreements with Syria on Thursday, totaling $6.4 billion, as part of a broad effort to rebuild the country’s war-ravaged infrastructure and revive key economic sectors.
The deals were announced during the Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum held at the Presidential Palace in Damascus, and mark a significant shift in regional engagement with Syria’s new leadership.
The new Syrian authorities came to power after the ousting of former president Bashar al-Assad in December, ending 14 years of brutal civil war.
Saudi Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih stated that 47 agreements and memorandums of understanding were signed, amounting to nearly 24 billion Saudi riyals (approximately $6.4 billion).
Of the total, around 11 billion riyals ($2.9 billion) will be dedicated to infrastructure projects, including the construction of three new cement plants.
Saudi telecom companies will invest 4 billion riyals ($1.07 billion) to expand digital infrastructure and cybersecurity capabilities in Syria, Al-Falih added. Further agreements were also signed in the agriculture and finance sectors.
The Syrian president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, was present at the forum, along with dozens of Saudi and Syrian officials and investors.
War Damage and Regional Backing
The civil war has left Syria’s infrastructure in ruins, with UN estimates placing the total reconstruction cost at over $400 billion. The new authorities are now turning to regional powers for support, and Saudi Arabia has emerged as a key backer of the new regime.
In addition to Thursday’s deals, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have pledged to settle Syria’s debt to the World Bank, amounting to approximately $15 million.
Earlier in May, Syria also signed a $7 billion energy agreement with a consortium of Qatari, Turkish, and American companies aimed at reviving its electricity sector.
Despite the scale of investment, serious concerns persist about the ideological orientation and conduct of the new regime, which came to power through armed force and is widely regarded as Islamist and sectarian in nature.
According to multiple reports, the regime is allegedly responsible for the massacre of over 1,500 Alawites and nearly 500 Druze—acts that have raised alarms among human rights observers.
Nonetheless, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey appear unfazed by the regime's nature or its violent rise to power, prioritizing economic and strategic interests over political or ethical considerations.
The Syrian defence ministry said on Tuesday it was aware of reports of "shocking violations" by people wearing military fatigues in the country's predominantly Druze city of Sweida, and said it would launch an investigation.
A Syrian government fact-finding committee said on Tuesday that 1,426 people had died in March in attacks on security forces and subsequent mass killings of Alawites, but concluded that commanders had not given orders for the revenge attacks.
A growing number of Druze residents in the Golan Heights are applying for Israeli citizenship in what appears to be a historic realignment of identity and loyalty within the community.
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