Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said the Western sanctions on the war-torn country have caused damage to the people, adding that the response should be increasing production.
Assad made the remarks in a speech addressing the newly-elected Syrian parliamentarians at the People’s Presidential Palace in the capital Damascus on Wednesday, reports Xinhua news agency.
Speaking about the recently-imposed Caesar sanctions by the US, Assad said the new set of sanctions is the latest in a string of economic siege that has caused big damage to the Syrian people.
He said the Caesar sanctions have additional damage and lots of psychological war.
The response to the economic siege, Assad continued, comes through increasing the production process in all sectors.
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He said the Syrian government will work on removing obstacles in the face of investments.
The President also noted that small investments should be supported as they support the national economy in the face of the economic siege.
The industry must also be supported as it reduces the need to import, he added.
On top of the challenges Syria is facing, Assad said, are the livelihood of the people, the economic situation, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Syria has till now reported about 1,300 confirmed COVID-19 cases.
The President also said that his government will continue to fight corruption, noting that fighting corruption has not stopped but increased in the latest few years.
During the one-hour-long speech, Assad took a pause for a few minutes as he suffered from a brief drop in blood pressure.
It’s the first time for the 54-year-old president to have a mild health issue while delivering a speech.
Meanwhile, Syria’s neighbouring Jordan has decided to close the Jaber border crossing with Syria for one week starting from Thursday after an increase of local coronavirus cases.
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On Wednesday, Interior Minister Salameh Hammad said that the decision was taken upon a recommendation from health authorities, Xinhua news agency reported.
This is one of the busiest border crossings in Syria and is the main crossing for Syrian exports to Jordan and the GCC countries.
Jordan witnessed a rise in the number of locally-transmitted coronavirus cases with the majority of them were registered at the northern border crossing with Syria.
A total of 20 cases were registered on Wednesday, of which 16 were local infections, said Health Minister Saad Jaber, increasing the total number of confirmed cases to 1,303.
Prime Minister Omar Razzaz on Wednesday directed related authorities to improve the health measures at the border crossings with Saudi Arabia and Iraq, vowing immediate measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.
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