Syria will be holding its first international trade fair
since the civil took hold of the country in 2011. The event being hailed as a “victory”
by Syrian officials and a symbol of confidence from the war-ravaged nation. The
fair is being held a few kilometers away from the rebel held suburb of Damascus
and is a showing of Assad’s military might as much as it is about employment
opportunities.
The state-run media claims that 43 countries are taking part
in the 10 day fair and will be seeing major investors from China, Russia, and
Iran. Egypt, South Africa, and Belarus will also be taking part, as well a few European
countries, but who will be doing so in a “private” capacity. For those that don’t
know, the west has been supporting the rebels, so any company seen doing
business with the Syrian government will likely face intense backlash.
The fair is made possible by a combination of assistance
from Russian and Iranian forces that have assisted the Syrian governments
military in taking back major territories in the past two years. The Syrian government
is partly holding the fair as a show of strength against rebel forces and to
celebrate their victories in the past few years. Syrian prime minister Imad
Khamis claims that the fair is “an indication of Syria's recovery and insisted
the war waged against Syria could not kill the Syrian people's love for life.”
Which is slightly ironic considering the various war crimes and violations of
the Geneva Convention that the Syrian government has committed in the past six
years, including the use of chemical weapons against rebels and firing weapons
upon protesters. Additionally, Roman Khudyakov, a Russian politician, speaks of
wanting to invest further in Syria and to bring more Russian tourism there.
Source: “Syria claims business comeback with international trade fair.” Fox
Business, Fox Business, 17 Aug. 2017,
www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2017/08/17/syria-holds-first-international-trade-fair-since-war-erupted.html
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