The Mayor of Damascus, formerly known as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, told a visiting Russian parliamentary delegation that $400 billion would be needed to restore Syria’s economy, according to head of the delegation, Dmitry Sablin, TASS reported Sunday.
“An important issue is the restoration of infrastructure. That will cost no less than $400 billion and will take from 10 to 15 years,” Sablin quotes Assad as saying.
Assad also said he did not expect Western oil and gas companies to work in the country, according to Sablin, who quoted Assad as saying, “We are not waiting for Western companies here, especially in the oil and gas sphere. I spoke about that with President Putin in Sochi. We want Russian companies to work here, and we expect their fast market entry.”
Assad is convinced his country would continue its development regardless of Western actions, Sablin said.
“Our cooperation must counter the aggressive policy pursued by the West. Syria will continue its development taking no notice of the West’s actions,” the lawmaker quotes Assad as saying.
Here is an example of current development projects taking place across Syria: