Syria sees Turkey as a natural partner

Tourism may create a bridge to a common Middle Eastern understanding through increasing interaction between Middle East societies, according to a top Syrian official who said Turkey-Syria relations could be important for the region’s future.

Syria’s Tourism Minister Saadalla Agha al-Kalaa, speaking to the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review on the sidelines of the 13th East Mediterranean International Tourism and Travel Fair, or EMITT, in Istanbul last week, said enhancing bilateral relations should be considered to enhance the welfare of the Middle East.

“The region needs peace and that peace should be comprehensive and sustainable,” said al-Kalaa. “Peace cannot be implemented on one side only. There is a lot to be done. In order to establish peace, regions should act in harmony.”

Syria remains technically at war with Israel since the latter occupied the Golan Heights in the 1967 Arab-Israeli War. Syria’s relations with Turkey have been cloudy at best since 1998 due to historical border issues and disputes over how the Euphrates and Tigris’s waters should to be shared.

Relations improved rapidly after the Syrian government expelled Abdullah Öcalan, chief of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, in 1998, acting upon increased pressure from Turkey. The improvement has manifested itself best in trade and economic relations.

“There is a new common future before Turkey and Syria,” al-Kalaa said. “The countries can compliment each other. The common history and common knowledge of the two neighbors are encouraging factors to enhance economic, social and cultural relations and these improvements would be the main carrier for peace.”

Achieving peace and stability:
Al-Kalaa visited EMITT as part of Syria being the “first guest country” at the fair. His optimism on bilateral relations stemmed from the rapidly increasing trade volume and social interaction between the two neighbors over the past six years.

The minister recalled that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad made a landmark visit to Turkey in 2004, after various steps to bring the two countries closer.
“This visit can be considered a milestone in bilateral relations, as well as a new opening for a successful common future oriented toward achieving peace and stability in the Middle East,” he told Daily News.

Speaking on the economic performance that the two countries displayed between 2002 and 2008, al-Kalaa said al-Assad’s visit contributed to the acceleration of business relations.

“The business volume between Turkey and Syria has doubled almost every year since 2002,” said al-Kalaa. “While the aggregate business volume stood at $200 million in 2002, it reached $1.8 billion last year. This is a success story and we are looking forward to sustaining this bright performance in the future.”

Growth expectations:
“For the next five years, our goal is to increase bilateral business volume by 20 percent every year and render it sustainable,” al-Kalaa said. “Syria-Turkey relations display a promising picture in every area. The number of tourists visiting Syria from Turkey and vice versa increased five-fold last year. All the indicators show that this boost in tourism volume will continue.”

“Moreover, we should promote Turkey and Syria as common tourist destinations. There is ongoing work on this issue. For example, package visits, involving both Turkey and Syria, can be marketed to foreign tourists,” al-Kalaa said. “While only a couple of years ago, the number of flights between the two countries were only once or twice a week, now it is twice a day. This is another positive indicator. We should be looking forward to increasing this figure even more.”

From family visits to tourism:
Speaking on the development of Syria’s tourism sector, al-Kalaa said tourism income constitutes 14.5 percent of Syria’s Gross Domestic Product, or GDP, and this income is growing 15 percent every year.

“Until six years ago, visits from Turkey to Syria and vice versa were limited to family visits for those that live on the Turkey-Syria border. But it is important to increase the number of tourists,” he said. “Turkey and Syria are located in a very sensitive region; therefore, the ties between the two countries should be strengthened. Through multi-directional and sophisticated policies, Turkey and Syria can attain considerable growth,” said al-Kalaa.