Türkiye ready to rebuild infrastructure in Syria: Minister

ANKARA

Türkiye has prepared an action plan for repairing and rebuilding war-torn Syria's airports, bridges, roads and railways, the Turkish transportation and infrastructure minister has announced.

"Syria needs everything to take a new beginning," Abdülkadir Uraloğlu said at a press conference in the capital Ankara.

Of the country's five airports, only Damascus and Aleppo are operational, handling a mere 100,000 and 50,000-60,000 trips, respectively, last year. These facilities lack basic modern equipment, relying on outdated technology and makeshift solutions.

"Imagine, they were trying to manage air traffic from a mobile phone application," Uraloğlu said.

He added that the airports still use computers from the 1990s and lack proper security equipment.

He said that the runways are seriously aging and that the first flight to Damascus and Aleppo was entirely on pilots' initiative, in other words, without any system and under visual conditions.

"After our friends reached a conclusion, we promptly put an action plan into motion," he said.

Türkiye's plan prioritizes reviving Damascus Airport in its initial phase. The minister also outlined plans to restore railway connections between Türkiye and Syria, acknowledging the challenges posed by years of neglect and conflict.

“There are parts of the railways that go from Türkiye to Hijaz; they have not been operated for a long time. We will quickly identify them and take a position to ensure the integrity of the railroad up to Damascus in the first place," he said.

Uraloğlu also mentioned potential collaborations in maritime affairs, trade revival, and even assistance with currency printing.