Transport

The Ministry of Transport, through its General Establishment for Road Transport, has announced the start of the works to rehabilitate the Damascus-Nassib international highway. Kuwait's Combined Group Contracting (CGC) is carrying out the project on this roughly 100-kilometre, four-lane stretch of the M45 motorway connecting the capital to the Jordanian border.

The first direct flight from the German city of Düsseldorf landed at the Damascus International Airport last Wednesday, marking the beginning of regular flight operations between Syria and Germany, a country that hosts a sizable Syrian diaspora.

The Syrian government is in talks with the Saudi Fund for Development to finalise the transfer of a USD 1.5 billion grant for the ‘Syria Without Camps’ initiative, the Deputy Minister of Disaster and Emergency Management, Ahmad Qzayz, said. 

The first US-Syria Business Forum, held on Monday at the Dama Rose Hotel in Damascus,  brought together senior Syrian officials, representatives of U.S. companies and business leaders in Damascus, reflecting growing momentum behind efforts to rebuild commercial ties between the two countries.

During French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Damascus last week, three agreements and memoranda of understanding in the civil aviation and air transport sector were signed in a ceremony held at the Presidential Palace, also known as the People’s Palace.

IVECO, an Italian multinational transport vehicle manufacturer headquartered in Turin, has announced a “strategic agreement” with Ghassan Aboud Motors — a subsidiary of Ghassan Aboud Group — to enter the Syrian market. 

U.S. bank JP Morgan Chase, Qatar National Bank and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank are set to lend USD 7 billion to the Qatari Power International Holding - owned by the influential Khayyat family - to build several energy and transport infrastructure projects in Syria, according to unnamed sources quoted by Bloomberg.

On June 28, the Ministry of Transport announced during a press conference the launch of a comprehensive programme to rehabilitate Syria’s central road network through domestic and international requests for proposals.

The Transport Ministry has recently announced a USD 37 million plan to maintain and rehabilitate road and bridge infrastructure in Deir-ez-Zor, and a USD 15 million similar plan for Raqqa.

In recent weeks, the Syrian authorities have signed several agreements and started discussions with foreign companies to invest in the transport sector:  CMA CGM is studying a project to connect Lattakia Port to three dry ports; Turkish company Bomaco will establish a free zone and dry port in Idlib; a Luxemburg-headquartered company and an Egyptian company have discussed investment in airport infrastructure; US construction company KBR has discussed road network projects; and Saudi company Samirock has shown interest in the transport of oil shale ore by rail.

A year and a half into post-Assad Syria, the business community in the coastal region navigates the positive and negative economic reverberations of the transitional government’s policies.

Stellantis Middle East has announced its official re-entry into the Syrian market, appointing Ghassan Aboud Motors — a subsidiary of Ghassan Aboud Group — as the authorised distributor for Jeep and Ram vehicles effective 1 January 2026, with the Peugeot brand set to follow in the second quarter of the same year.

The World Bank and the Syrian Ministry of Transport have “started discussions regarding potential support to Syria’s transport sector through IDA grant funding,” a spokesperson of the World Bank told The Syria Report.

Economic engagement between Syria and Jordan has regained momentum in recent weeks, as business associations and government officials from both countries intensified contacts through forums, bilateral meetings, and the signature of a cooperation agreement.

Syrian-Saudi economic relations have furthered over the past week following the signing of contracts and binding agreements in the fields of aviation, telecommunications, and infrastructure development. The agreements were signed during a high-level Saudi visit to Damascus that culminated in the launch of several large-scale projects and the announcement of new investment mechanisms aimed at facilitating capital inflows into Syria after the lifting of economic sanctions.

Swedish telecommunications multinational, Ericsson and air travel giant Turkish Airlines have appointed new representatives in Syria, according to issue no. 5 (2026) of the Official Gazette. 

The Tartous port will host this spring its first ferry line with daily trips for passengers connecting to ports in Lebanon, Turkey and Cyprus. Earlier this month, a Turkish company signed an agreement to build a shipyard in Tartous Port.

Syria established last December the Syrian Aviation Holding Company, a company intended to replace Syrian Arab Airlines (Syrianair), according to Decree No. 214 of 2026 (see Official Gazette Issue 1 of 2026). 

On November 6, AD Ports Group, a UAE-based logistics and port operator, announced that it had signed a shareholder agreement with France’s CMA CGM to acquire a 20 percent stake in the Lattakia International Container Terminal (LICT) for AED 81 million (around USD 22 million). The deal values LICT at some USD 110 million. The agreement was signed in Abu Dhabi by the CEO of AD Ports Group, Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, and the CEO of CMA CGM, Rodolphe Saadé. This acquisition marks the second investment by an Emirati company in Syria’s port sector following the takeover of DP World in Tartous Port earlier this year.

A delegation of French businessmen and women arrived in Syria on October 2, meeting with President Ahmad Al-Sharaa and several ministers, including those in charge of Transportation, Telecommunication and Finance. The visit was organised by the Mouvement des entreprises de France (MEDEF), a federation of business owners. This first “French-Syrian Economic Forum” included representatives of 44 large companies.