ISTANBUL

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said on Monday that his country is moving toward a new economic program and a reconstruction phase, stressing the importance of benefiting from the expertise of the Syrian diaspora in Germany.

His remarks came in an interview with the state-run Syrian news channel on the sidelines of his visit to Germany, where he arrived on Sunday evening as part of a tour that will also take him to the United Kingdom on Monday and Tuesday.

“We met with major companies, and there is interest in strengthening economic relations,” al-Sharaa said.
He added that “politics requires connections, the most important of which are economic ties, and this is what has been achieved today in Syrian-German relations.”

Al-Sharaa noted that Germany is the world’s third-largest economy and a key industrial nation, possessing advanced technologies in agriculture, telecommunications and artificial intelligence.

“Syria is entering a new economic program and reconstruction phase, so it is very important to benefit from the expertise of the Syrian community in Germany,” he said.

In a related statement, the Syrian presidency said al-Sharaa held a roundtable meeting with representatives of several German companies, attended by Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, Economy Minister Mohammad Nidal al-Shaar, Energy Minister Mohammad al-Bashir and Emergency Minister Raed al-Saleh.

The companies presented proposals across multiple sectors, including energy, finance, security, digital transformation, construction, health care and logistics.

Several memorandums of understanding were signed between the Syrian side and participating companies, according to the statement.

Germany reopened its embassy in Damascus on March 25, 2025, after a 13-year closure.

The Syrian government is seeking to improve economic conditions by signing international agreements, attracting investors and opening up to the international community following a devastating war waged by the ousted regime of Bashar al-Assad that lasted 14 years, from 2011 to 2024.

Writing by Khaled Badr in Istanbul