Syrian-Uzbek Economic Forum Amid Tensions With Uzbek Fighters

The Syrian-Uzbek Economic Forum held in Aleppo last week reflected Damascus’ growing efforts to diversify its economic partnerships and reposition Syria as a commercial transit hub amid ongoing geopolitical disruptions across the region. However, the forum took place only days after violent confrontations in Idlib between Syrian security forces and Uzbek fighters, underlining the complex overlap between Syria’s economic diplomacy and unresolved security dynamics involving thousands of foreign fighters still present in Syria, mostly in the northwest.