An interview with Ahmed al-Sharaa, Syria’s president

The whole interview is interesting, and I recommend reading it. Here are some selected exerpts:

The Economist: Maybe you could start by giving me a sense of your vision for Syria. Where do you expect the country to be in five years? Tell me what it will be like.

Ahmed al-Sharaa: First of all, Syria was under the control of the previous regime for 54 years. During these 54 years, Syria went through many disasters. Syria has retreated regionally on the level of the development of human resources, the level of economy, and also the level of political relationships with neighbouring countries. Previously Syria was a source of concern for all neighbouring countries. At the same time, it was not fulfilling its basic duties towards the people. The most important thing for the previous regime was to maintain power and to use security methods to remain in power. The security method means torture, as you have seen in Saydnaya prison, and arresting and beating people, and when people revolted against him, he used chemical weapons, explosive bombs, and other methods.

Regarding the economy, all the economic sectors are almost destroyed because the regime did not work on building an economy for the country itself, but it was trying to steal the wealths of the country to collect the money and export it illegally abroad.

Therefore, the next phase of five years will revolve around rebuilding the state on new and modern foundations. It is going to promote justice and counseling, and it is going to be based on the participation of all segments of society in running the country. The next five years are going to have several milestones. We hope to overcome all these difficulties and obstacles in a smooth manner, and we are counting on the wisdom of the Syrian people and the forgiveness that is shown by all the sections of the Syrian people.

The other thing is that Syria needs to build a strong economy. Today, we are working on rehabilitating the economy in the country. There is also the security challenge to control weapons in the country, and we have come a long way in controlling the weapons in the country, except for the area under the control of the SDF, or the area occupied by the PKK in North-East Syria. We are having negotiations with them, hoping to resolve matters without any confrontation.

Meanwhile, we have worked during the past short period on restoring the relationships between Syria and regional and international countries, and, thank God, we have been very successful until now. So, if things go like this in the coming five years, I believe the future is going to be bright during the next five years, and I believe that the two most important things that could increase the suffering of the Syrian people include, first, the American sanctions imposed by the United States of America on the regime because it was killing its people, and these sanctions are still in place. The other thing is the recent Israeli advancement, which needs to be solved. The Israelis need to retreat because their advancement will cause a lot of trouble in the future.

The Economist: Last night, you laid out the road map forward, and you said there would be a transitional government until free and fair elections were held. When do you expect those elections to be held, and will they include elections for the presidency?

Ahmed al-Sharaa: First of all, we should know that during the past fourteen years, a very big number, almost half the Syrian people, left Syria and went to different countries. The people who left, most of them, stopped having any legal contact with their country. There are a lot of births and deaths that have not been registered in the state registers. There are also those who have obtained new nationalities and renounced their Syrian nationality, or did not care for it anymore because of the presence of the previous regime back then.

Therefore, in order for Syria to have free and fair elections that have integrity, it needs a census, the return of the people living abroad, opening the embassies, and restoring legal contact with the people. Moreover, many of the people who were internally displaced or in camps located in neighboring countries are also not registered with refugee commissions, and so on.

Therefore, this process needs time, and I have asked the experts, and they said we need at least three to four years to complete this process. Meanwhile, we are developing the election law, the constitution, and the laws that will regulate the country. We are working on them thoroughly and in consultation with the experts and the United Nations, as well. Hence, when these things are ready, we will have the elections that have integrity.

The Economist: Let’s talk about the economy, because it is in a very difficult situation. You urgently need financial support. You had the Emir of Qatar here. You are going to Saudi Arabia. Will you be getting financial support from the Gulf states now, and will it be enough to help stabilize your economy?

Ahmed al-Sharaa: I am trying as much as possible not to have Syria live on aid and support, but rather build its economy. Syria has a huge opportunity for investment, and these countries can, through their sovereign funds, make wide investments in Syria. There are plenty of opportunities for them here. The KSA and Qatar are countries that love Syria very much, and they hurried to support the Syrian people from the very first moment. We are discussing with them having big investment projects that build the infrastructure and create job opportunities, and at the same time bring them benefit through the investment return of the projects they implement.

The Economist: As you said, you need the sanctions to be lifted, especially the financial sanctions from America. Have you spoken to the Trump administration about this, and are you confident that they will lift them soon?

Ahmed al-Sharaa: The Trump administration has recently taken power, and there has been no communication yet. However, we seek, in the coming days, to restore diplomatic relations between us and the United States of America. And if that happens, we will submit our objection to the continuation of the sanctions, and I believe that President Trump seeks peace in the area, and it is a top priority to lift the sanctions. The United States of America does not have any interest in maintaining the suffering of the Syrian people.

The Economist: You want to re-establish diplomatic relations with America, but right now HTS is listed as a terrorist group by the United Nations. Does that need to be lifted before you can establish diplomatic relations?

Ahmed al-Sharaa: I believe many events change the reality of things, and in the latest conference, there was an item that stipulates the dissolution of all the factions, including HTS, but maybe you just saw the military uniform in that conference (jokingly).

Therefore, there is an item to dissolve all the factions of the Syrian revolution, including HTS. Hence, the classification has become meaningless.

Today, my status is the President of Syria, not HTS; and the relations should be between Syria and America, not between HTS and the USA.