Iran, Syria to Sign Agreements During Raisi's Visit to Damascus
Iran
Damascus – Asharq Al-Awsat
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi will visit Damascus Wednesday at the head of a sizeable ministerial delegation, the first by an Iranian president to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since war broke out in Syria in 2011. A local newspaper revealed an Iranian plan to invest in the electricity sector in Syria, which will be discussed during the President's visit. Al-Watan quoted informed sources saying that the Syrian government is arranging to sign new agreements with Iran in energy and electricity and that negotiations will occur during the Iranian President's visit. The talks will also address a new Iranian line of credit to be invested in electricity, aiming to help Syria improve the sector, which has been suffering for over a decade. According to the newspaper's sources, the Iranian delegation will discuss assisting Syria in repairing and establishing new electric power plants. The Iranian President's agenda includes talks with his Syrian counterpart, meetings with Syrian politicians and clerics, and a tour of several areas in Damascus and its countryside. Meanwhile, the joint Syrian-Iraqi committee began meeting in Damascus less than a week after the joint Syrian-Iranian economic committee sessions in Damascus. The meetings discussed establishing the railway line through Iran, Iraq, and Syria and constructing the Basra-Shalamcheh line, announced Iranian minister for roads and construction Mehrdad Bazerbash. Bazerbash chaired the Iranian delegation in the meetings that focused on the electricity and priorities in the Iranian credit line. They also addressed the railway corridor, increasing the number of trips between the two countries, assisting the Syrian fleet, and inaugurating the al-Hamidiyah Port in Tartus. The Iranian side renewed its request for 5,000 hectares of Syrian agricultural land for agricultural experiments and transferred Iranian expertise to the Syrian side. Iraqi Trade Minister, Atheer al-Ghurairy, headed the Iraqi delegation, and the Syrian Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade, Mohammad Samer al-Khalil, chaired the team to the meetings of the Syrian-Iraqi joint committee. According to local media in Damascus, a number of joint memorandums of understanding are expected to be signed. Meanwhile, Syrian authorities are removing the checkpoints in Damascus near the security square, including a barrier at the entrance to the al-Maliki neighborhood close to the presidential palace. Earlier, Damascus governorate removed illegal stalls and kiosks on sidewalks and roads to facilitate traffic. The services department warned all stalls and kiosks' owners and then began removing the illegal businesses, issuing tickets for their owners. Notably, Damascus preceded the visit of the Saudi Foreign Minister to Damascus last April by removing three roadblocks leading to the Abu Rummaneh neighborhood, where most Arab embassies are located. It is close to the presidential palace and the Four Seasons Hotel, the residence of international delegations. The streets surrounding religious shrines, such as Sitt Ruqayyah in Old Damascus and the shrine of Sayyida Zeinab in southern Damascus, are witnessing a cleaning campaign amid a security alert. The Iranian President is expected to visit the areas and the shrines.
from Asharq AL-awsat https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/4306116/iran-syria-sign-agreements-during-raisis-visit-damascus
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