Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said Syria is serious about reaching some form of security agreement with Israel that would preserve regional stability, while presenting Syria as a regional hub for energy supplies and trade.
Al-Sharaa denied that negotiations with Israel had reached a dead end, but said they were proceeding with difficulty because of Israel’s insistence on maintaining a presence on Syrian territory, according to remarks carried by Turkey’s Anadolu Agency on Thursday, April 16.
The Syrian president added, on the sidelines of his participation in the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, that “Israel treated Syria brutally and occupied part of the land adjacent to the occupied Golan.” By contrast, Damascus chose “the path of diplomacy, and persuading the international community to help so that matters do not worsen.”
For his part, the US envoy to Syria, Thomas Barrack, said President al-Sharaa had confirmed that he did not want to go to war with Israel, and that no rocket had been launched from Syria toward it.
Syria acted wisely by not becoming involved in battles with Israel after the events of October 7, referring to Operation Al-Aqsa Flood, according to Barrack, who said the time had come to resume talks between Syria and Israel.
Syria’s Role in Supply Routes
Regarding the role Syria could play in alternative supply routes after the confrontation between the United States and Israel on one side, and Iran on the other, President al-Sharaa said Syria had pointed to the need to reinvest in its strategic location since his arrival in Damascus last year.
But people felt a greater need for that location after war broke out in Iran, especially as the world was harmed by disruptions to energy supplies, according to al-Sharaa.
He said Syria represents a safe corridor and an alternative route for energy supplies and supply chains, especially through the linkage now taking place between the Arab Gulf and Turkey, through Syria and Jordan at the same time.
He added that Syria’s access to the Mediterranean through this route provides a strong and secure link in supply chains between East and West, and also in energy supplies.
A beginning for this has already taken place through a joint agreement between Syria and Iraq, and Iraqi oil products have started to be exported through Syrian ports.
Al-Sharaa believes relations are helping greatly today, as ties are stable between Turkey, Syria, Jordan, and the Gulf states, along with greater security.
One of the challenges facing regional connectivity, he added, is the stability of the region and its remaining neutral amid the conflicts taking place around it.
He said the Four Seas project runs in parallel with that, and is part of this larger chain of regional integration and reconnecting routes.
The world today is looking for secure supply chains and energy supplies, according to al-Sharaa, through integration with Azerbaijan and its access to the Caspian Sea, Syria and Turkey and their access to the Mediterranean, and the Arab Gulf states and their access to the Red Sea and the Arab Gulf at the same time.
Integration With the SDF, A Major Achievement So Far
President al-Sharaa said the process of national integration and unifying military forces, given Syria’s situation before last year’s liberation and after it, had seen a major achievement over the past year, as revolutionary forces that had initially been different and fragmented were merged.
The Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, are also currently being integrated, and things are going well, he said, pointing to the departure of the last foreign base in northeastern Syria.
He considered what has been achieved so far a major accomplishment for Syria, and said it had significantly helped stabilize the Syrian situation.
On April 16, the Syrian army took control of the last remaining bases of the US-led international coalition in al-Hasakah Governorate, northeastern Syria.
A Reciprocal Relationship Between Syria and Ukraine
Regarding the recent visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Damascus, President al-Sharaa said there is a historic partnership between Syria and Ukraine in the fields of food and energy, adding that Ukraine is one of the countries with broad expertise in agricultural production and agricultural inputs, among other fields.
Syria is also fundamentally an agricultural country and needs many skills and further agricultural development, he explained. The core partnership is an attempt to establish a base in Syria for re-exporting essential goods and food supplies through Syrian ports.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Syria on April 5, in an advanced step on the path toward restoring diplomatic relations between the two countries after years of rupture during the time of the former regime and its alliance with Russia, and the two sides discussed developing bilateral relations.
Turkey, Regional Connectivity and a Free Zone
The partnership between Syria and Turkey is one on which much can be built for the future security of the region, and of the world as a whole, al-Sharaa said.
He said there are “great opportunities for regional connectivity between Syria and Turkey,” revealing that work is now under way on a free zone to become a Syrian-Turkish free zone for transferring some industries, or partnering in specific industries, in Idlib (northwestern Syria). He said it lies on main roads linking Idlib with Latakia (western Syria), Aleppo (northern Syria), and Damascus (southern Syria).
He pointed to many projects the two sides have worked on, including airport expansion, as well as linking ports and investing in them. Turkish companies are also working in infrastructure to rebuild Syria and restore infrastructure inside the country.
He said Turkey supported the Syrian revolution for 14 years and stood by the oppressed Syrian people, and that the two countries are connected by long-standing historical and geographic ties.
Meetings on the Sidelines of the Antalya Forum
President Ahmed al-Sharaa met at his residence in Antalya with the US special envoy to Syria, Thomas Barrack, in the presence of Foreign Minister and Expatriates Minister Asaad al-Shibani and General Intelligence Chief Hussein al-Salama.
He also met Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin.
The two sides discussed ways to strengthen cooperation and joint coordination, in addition to developments in the region.
He also met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and the accompanying delegation, in the presence of Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani and General Intelligence Chief Hussein al-Salama.
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