Syrian President Bashar al-Assad with his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi. Source: the Syrian Presidency Office.
On May 3, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi signed a series of long-term cooperation agreements to bolster economic ties between the two allies.
Raisi met with al-Assad after landing in the country’s capital, Damascus, for a two-day visit, the first by an Iranian head of state since 2010. The Iranian president is accompanied by the ministers of foreign affairs, defense, oil, roads and urban development and telecommunications as well as a delegation of Iranian businessmen.
The political, military and economic support provided by Iran allowed Damascus to make a stand against Western-backed rebels in the early years of the Syrian war. Later with additional help from Russia, government forces managed to recapture most of the country.
After holding talks in Damascus, al-Assad and Raisi signed at least 15 agreements and memorandums of understanding related to several sectors, including oil, agriculture, railways and free trade zones.
The deals are of great importance for Syria, whose economy has been on the decline for the last few years as a result of Western sanctions and other factors.
In an interview with the Beirut-based Al-Mayadeen channel ahead of his visit, Raisi called for reconstruction efforts and for Syrian refugees who fled the country’s war to return home.
“Syria’s government and people have gone through great hardship,” Syrian state media quoted Raisi as telling Assad during their meeting. “Today, we can now say that you have overcome all these problems and were victorious, despite the threats and sanctions imposed against you.”
Raisi visit is seen as a blow to Israel who recently escalated its attacks against Syria, in a bid to push Iranian-backed forces out from the country.
Meanwhile, the United States Department of State warned that deepening ties between Iran and the Syrian government should be of great concern to the world in its first comment on the visit.
All in all, it appears that the Syrian-Iranian alliance is stronger than ever. All attempts to drive the countries apart have clearly failed. Now, Arab countries who were once a part of these attempts are working on restoring relations with both Syria and Iran.
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