Saudi Arabia and Qatar to pay back Syria's debt to the World Bank

BEIRUT (AP) — Saudi Arabia and Qatar said Sunday they will pay Syria’s outstanding debt to the World Bank, a move likely to make the international institution resume its support to the war-torn country.

A joint statement by the finance ministries of Saudi and Qatar said the decision to pay Syria’s nearly $15 million debt to the World Bank was made during this month's meetings in Washington by the World Bank and IMF.

Syria’s Foreign Ministry thanked the two oil and gas-rich nations for paying the debt saying it opens the way for activating cooperation toward recovery and reconstruction after a 14-year conflict that killed half a million people and caused wide destruction in the country.

Since the fall of Bashar Assad’s government in early December, when insurgent groups led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham stormed his seat of power in Damascus, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been main backers of the country’s new leadership.

The United Nations in 2017 estimated that it would cost at least $250 billion to rebuild Syria. Some experts now say that number could reach at least $400 billion.

The joint Saudi-Qatari statement said the payment of Syria’s loans will facilitate the resumption of World Bank support and activities in Syria that have been stalled for more than 14 years. The statement added that the loan payment will allow Syria to take allotments from the World Bank in the near future for “vital sectors.” It did not elaborate.

Syria’s infrastructure suffered wide destruction during the conflict that broke out in March 2011. Last month, Qatar began supplying Syria with natural gas through Jordan to ease the long hours of electricity cuts that are common in much of the country.

A main obstacle for development projects in Syria are Western sanctions that were imposed on the country more than a decade ago mainly targeting Assad’s government and officials.

The Trump administration has yet to formally recognize the new Syrian government led by president and HTS leader Ahmad al-Sharaa. HTS remains a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, and the sanctions imposed on Damascus under Assad remain in place.

However, Washington has eased some restrictions. The U.S. Treasury in January issued a general license, lasting six months, that authorizes certain transactions with the Syrian government, including some energy sales and incidental transactions.

The European Union, meanwhile, has begun to ease some energy and transport sanctions and banking restrictions against Syria, suspending measures targeting oil, gas and electricity as well as transport, including the aviation sector.

The British government said Thursday it was lifting sanctions against a dozen Syrian entities, including government departments and media outlets.