Syria is moving quickly to reenable its transport sector through a series of agreements and talks on cooperation with Arab and international parties, as part of efforts to turn the country into a link between the Arabian Gulf and Europe through its territory. But the reality presents a fast-moving competitive scene in regional transport, where alternative and major international corridors are crowding the field, including the Iraqi-Turkish “Development Road” and the “Spice Route.”
While Syria’s geographic location gives it competitive advantages linked to shorter distances and multiple ports on the Mediterranean Sea, the wager on turning this strategic capital into real financial returns remains conditional on rehabilitating infrastructure, securing sustainable stability, and rebuilding trust with regional partners and investors.
A Location Between Three Continents
Economist Mahmoud Abdul Karim told Enab Baladi that Syria’s geographic location is a rare strategic capital in the region, as it lies at the heart of a triangle linking three continents. It shares borders with Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Lebanon and Israel to the west, in addition to a Mediterranean coastline that includes three main ports, Tartus, Latakia, and Baniyas. This positioning makes Syria, in theory, the only junction connecting the Arabian Peninsula to Europe by land, without the need to bypass costly maritime routes or volatile shipping routes.
Abdul Karim said recent field developments confirm that regional interest in Syria as a transit corridor is shifting from theory to action. He cited Iraq’s resumption of oil exports through Syrian territory via the port of Baniyas, and the Turkish trade minister’s announcement that transit trade through Syria toward Gulf countries has become possible.
He added that the European Commission is studying Syria’s reintegration into the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, known as the “Spice Route,” a project aimed at linking India to Europe through an integrated network of railways, ports, and land routes.
According to Abdul Karim, Syria’s geographic location gives it an exceptional theoretical possibility as a regional transit hub where energy and trade lines between the Gulf, Europe, and Central Asia intersect. Turning this possibility into actual revenues remains dependent on three objective conditions:
- Rehabilitating transport infrastructure, which needs huge funding and years of operation.
- Sustainable security stability that reassures shipping companies and major logistics lines.
- A legal and commercial framework that restores confidence among investors and regional partners.
Competitive Routes
The competitive landscape Syria faces in the regional transport sector is complex and real, and should not be underestimated, Abdul Karim explained.
He said there are three competing corridors. The first is the Iraqi-Turkish Development Road, a project estimated to cost $17 billion that links the Grand Faw Port in southern Iraq to the Turkish border through an integrated network of roads and railways. The Iraqi government expects it to generate annual revenues of $4 billion and create one million jobs once completed.
The second is the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, known as the “Spice Route,” which was launched on the sidelines of the G20 summit in 2023. It links India to Europe through the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Jordan, with a cost ranging between $8 billion and $20 billion, and has the advantage that 70% of it consists of maritime lines that do not require massive land infrastructure.
The third is the Emirati-Israeli railway project, in which the UAE’s Etihad Rail is developing a link with the ports of Haifa under the Abraham Accords, creating a westward-oriented alternative to the northern corridor.
Abdul Karim noted that Syria’s potential competitive edge over these corridors revolves around three points.
The first is distance and cost. The Syrian route is effectively the shortest between Turkey and the Arabian Peninsula, compared with the Iraqi route, which turns geographically east before returning west. This has direct implications for shipping costs and logistics time.
The second is the multiplicity of ports. The ports of Tartus, Latakia, and Baniyas offer multiple export options toward Europe and the Mediterranean, without the need for the Suez Canal or Gulf passages, a factor that has gained exceptional strategic value in light of current risks in the Strait of Hormuz.
The third is relative political neutrality. While the “Spice Route” is linked to the unresolved issue of regional normalization with Israel, and the Development Road is tied to complex Turkish-Iraqi calculations, the Syrian corridor so far appears to be outside these heavy political conditions, giving it a broader capacity to attract regional interest.
Abdul Karim concluded by saying that Syria today possesses four of the seven conditions needed to become an effective logistics hub: geographic location, regional investment momentum, the opening of a legislative window, and the return of international financial connectivity. But it still lacks full infrastructure rehabilitation, comprehensive security stability, and internal political integration.
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