Syria signs $800-million deal with UAE firm to rebuild Tartus Port PHOTO

Syria has signed an $800 million agreement with Dubai-based logistics giant DP World to reconstruct the port of Tartus, in a bid to accelerate the country's post-war recovery.

According to state news agency SANA, the deal was signed in Damascus between DP World and Syria’s General Directorate of Land and Maritime Ports, with President Ahmed al-Sharaa in attendance, Caliber.Az reports.

Syrian officials hailed the agreement as a key milestone in modernising the nation’s logistics infrastructure.

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, CEO of DP World, said the port has the potential to become a major regional hub for trade and exports. “Our goal is to transform Tartus into one of the world’s leading ports,” he said during the signing ceremony.

Kutaiba Badawi, head of Syria’s Port Authority, described the agreement as the beginning of a new era for maritime transport and a step toward restoring Syria’s place on the global economic map.

Tartus, Syria’s second most important seaport after Latakia, was previously operated by Russia’s Stroytransgaz under a long-term lease. That contract was terminated in January 2025 following the ouster of former president Bashar al-Assad — raising questions about the future of Russia’s naval presence, as Tartus hosts Moscow’s only military base on the Mediterranean.

By Khagan Isayev