TEHRAN (Iran News) – Ira Has No Rival for Construction of House in Syria. Iranian Deputy Minister for Roads and Urban Development says Iran has no serious rival for construction of houses in Syria, as the country can take advantage of this opportunity in Syria.
Mahmoud Mahmoudzadeh said that Iran can build and rebuild hundreds of thousands of homes in Syria without any competition if it could only transfer money.
Mahmoudzadeh on Tuesday said, “The issue of transferring money for the activities of Iranian companies for Syria’s reconstruction will soon be solved.” He added that Iran can build at least 200,000 residential units, where it has no competition.
His remarks indicate that the reconstruction will be paid by Iran, which is in deep economic crisis due to U.S. sanctions but hopes that an agreement in nuclear talks with the United States in Vienna will be soon concluded and a major part of those sanctions lifted, providing Tehran with much-needed foreign currency.
Iran agreed to build 200,000 housing units in Syria (link is external) in February 2019, but it was unable to proceed, most probably because of U.S. sanctions that drained its foreign currency coffers. It is possible that the old plan is being revived with the anticipation of sanctions being lifted and funds frozen by other countries to be unblocked.
Mahmoudzadeh noted two issues of transfer of money and construction materials are hurdles in way of involvement of Iranian constructors in Syria. He added that governments of the two countries can pave appropriate grounds for the private sector for export of technical and engineering services, adding that Syria is a country which needs broad renovation and development because of its long-time involvement in the civil war.
He said Iranians can both involve in construction of house and improving developmental infrastructures so it can be a good market for Iranians who are active in the construction industry.
On competition of Saudi Arabia and Qatar with Iran for reconstruction of Syria, he said there is no rivalry because Syrian officials have given priorities to Iranian companies and therefore there will be no problem. He added that the main issue is to take measures by the central banks of the two countries for exchange of money.
Mahmoudzadeh added that Sanction does not merely suffer Iran because Syria also suffers from it.
Last week Iran’s Roads and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami visited Syria and pledged to help Damascus in the reconstruction of the country.
In November 2019, Syria and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding to also rebuild the country’s electricity grid. IRNA reported at the time that the agreement covered the construction of power plants, transmission lines and the possibility of connecting their power grids via Iraq.
