President Hafez Assad of Syria may be motivated to make peace with Israel as a way of solving his country’s chronic economic problems.
Not only will peace bring tremendous savings in the defense budget, but it will attract foreign investors and boost the economy, analysts say.
Like Anwar Sadat of Egypt 15 years ago, the desire to heal the economy may be one of the prime incentives underlying the sound of peace from Damascus.
With its 13.5 million inhabitants, Syria has an annual budget of $8.3 billion, with an external debt of $15 billion, mostly to Russia.
Almost a quarter of the national budget – $2.2 billion – goes to defense.
But the peace process has already allowed Syria to cut its defense budget by 11 per cent. And the decrease in tensions has led the Syrians to anticipate an immediate increase of 25 percent in tourism.
Three years ago, Syria was on the brink of bankruptcy. However, American economic rewards for Syrian support in the 1991 Persian Gulf crisis, and the discovery and development of oil fields, have set the Syrian economy on the road to recovery.
Syria now produces some 500,000 barrels a day, with an annual oil revenue of more than $2 billion.
The debt to Russia – mostly for the vast arms purchases there – remains an onerous economic burden.
Foreign Minister Farouk al-Sharaa visited Moscow recently, and came back with a repayment schedule to be spread over the next 10 years.
Syria has not waited for a peace treaty with Israel to be signed to enact a new investment bill aimed at attracting foreign investors.
Tourists and journalists have reported a marked improvement in Damascus over the past few months. Shops are plentifully stocked and offer such Western goods as Reebok running shoes and Levi’s jeans, although, at an average wage of $100 a month, few Syrians can afford them.
Restaurants and coffee houses are full and even chronic power failures are said to have disappeared, say visitors.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
