Google Cloud Speech-to-Text API (Chirp) + Gemini 2.5 Flash Non-Thinking. Treat it as a searchable index of what was broadcast, not a quotation record.
00:00:01but the final judgment
00:00:09will not have a problem
00:00:15Good evening, dear viewers, and welcome to a new episode of
00:00:18the Syria Tonight program. We begin with the headlines of
00:00:21our files.
00:00:27of dealing with a trader to the mentality of dealing with Syria Tonight begins with the Syrian Bank's execution
00:00:31and then we forget in return confidence of its first letter of credit since 14 years ago
00:00:35on, and built for the benefit of the Syrian Petroleum Company to import fuels.
00:00:39or the letter of credit that was made And in our second file,
00:00:43we will present to you a session of the United Nations Security Council, where members
00:00:46will discuss the situation in Syria, in the presence of Syria's
00:00:51point and an end to Permanent Representative to the United
00:00:52to undermining the stability of the currency. Nations.
00:00:54of the entire energy situation from Welcome. The Central Bank of Syria
00:01:02dealing between them.
00:01:08of energy security in
00:01:18announced the execution of its first letter of credit for the benefit
00:01:22of the Syrian Petroleum Company in coordination with one of the major American banks.
00:01:30Foreign currency, and it can plan resources coming from This comes with the aim of international generating petroleum products from one of the major international
00:01:34being disclosed. This simple a qualitative companies. Details in the following report. A new deal to supply
00:01:37petroleum products to Syria brings together the Syrian Petroleum
00:01:41Company and Saudi Aramco within direct commercial
00:01:44and banking arrangements aimed at securing
00:01:48petroleum supplies to the local market.
00:01:51To translate this deal into practical steps, the Central
00:01:55you mentioned about Bank executed its first letter of credit since
00:01:59confidence. The movements of the 14 years ago for the benefit of the Syrian
00:02:02Petroleum Company, in coordination with one of the major American
00:02:06stations are witnessing banks, which provides the necessary banking tool
00:02:09to implement the deal and establishes
00:02:12a financing and settlement mechanism
00:02:14I mean, when this for trade related to the supply of petroleum products.
00:02:17The importance of this step goes beyond the deal
00:02:20itself, as it reflects the role of the Central Bank of Syria in preparing the necessary
00:02:24banking channels to finance strategic trade, coordinating
00:02:28documentary procedures with the concerned
00:02:32encouraging, but parties, which supports the regularity of oil supplies and enhances the reliability of
00:02:35carrying out ongoing operations through the official
00:02:39banking system. The bank affirmed its continued work
00:02:42in coordination with the Syrian Petroleum Company to develop the necessary
00:02:46financial and documentary arrangements to facilitate supply
00:02:49operations, which supports the continuity of supplies
00:02:52and meets the needs of the local market.
00:02:56This step comes after discussions held by a delegation
00:03:00of the Syrian Central Bank, headed by Governor Safwat Tarslan,
00:03:03on the fifth of this October with the US Federal Reserve
00:03:07in New York, which covered the practical files of the banking
00:03:10relationship between the two sides. With this letter
00:03:15to your question, of credit, the Central
00:03:16two days ago, I passed by Bank of Syria opens a new path to finance oil product imports
00:03:20in a step that reactivates banking
00:03:23tools that have been absent
00:03:26in Syria appreciate. for more than a decade and supports securing supplies through official
00:03:30channels.
00:03:33On this topic, we are pleased to host
00:03:36directly from Mulhouse, France, the expert in Middle East economics, Dr.
00:03:40to the ability to Company. What is the benefit of this Khaled Al-Turkawi. Good evening, Dr. Khaled. And joining
00:03:43us from Idlib is the energy researcher, Dr.
00:03:46Musaab Al-Shabib. Welcome, Dr. Musaab,
00:03:50and welcome to our two dear guests. I will start with you, Dr. Khaled.
00:03:54First, what does this letter of credit,
00:03:57which was announced by the Central
00:04:01that I believe this issue Bank of Syria, mean?
00:04:04without subsidy, May God bless you. Thank you for the invitation. There are two important points
00:04:08that those who follow Syrian affairs and are interested
00:04:12a completely different step in in this news understand. The first point
00:04:14method in Syria from tomorrow, is what a letter of credit means, and the second point is what a letter of credit means in this case,
00:04:18in the case of buying oil. Now,
00:04:20The queues have started for what does a letter of credit mean? A letter of credit is an agreement
00:04:24that the bank
00:04:26guarantees the seller's rights and guarantees the buyer's rights, meaning that
00:04:31on oil. affect that. the goods are delivered and the money is held, and when
00:04:34announcement the goods match the agreed-upon conditions and the
00:04:38or receiving their price agreed-upon contract, the bank would have sent
00:04:41these funds, and therefore also sent them to the seller,
00:04:45and therefore the buyer also
00:04:47companies will enter ensured that these goods have the same specifications and that he did not
00:04:49miss anything. This is in the theoretical framework of all
00:04:53purchases. But in Syria's case now, what happened
00:04:57I mean, we are approaching the second year of was that sellers, oil
00:05:01from that time to this sellers, used to stipulate to the Syrians,
00:05:02an energy credit fund. to the Ministry of Energy and Syrian institutions that want to buy oil, whether diesel
00:05:06or gasoline or others, that they pay cash, either
00:05:10in Turkey or Jordan or Lebanon or any other country. This
00:05:13is one. They pay it in advance
00:05:16before they bring any
00:05:19supplies. Then they carry out the supply
00:05:23process. So you have a problem if there is a defect
00:05:27in the supply process, for example, if the diesel or gasoline does not meet
00:05:30the agreed-upon specifications, then the money is already with
00:05:33the seller. This is one. If it is delayed, then you also
00:05:36have a problem. How do you secure large quantities? You have
00:05:40almost 130 to 140 million US dollars every day that are supposed to go out of the country. This is also
00:05:43a problem. So what happened now is that
00:05:47you are only giving them a letter of commitment, a written
00:05:51paper stating that this bank guarantees your right,
00:05:54seller, to have the funds if
00:05:57the goods are delivered according to the agreed-upon
00:06:00conditions and specifications in the contract.
00:06:03Therefore, what will happen based on this
00:06:07is that the Syrian government will ensure
00:06:10that the funds are sent to the bank. One,
00:06:13the seller is supposed to adhere to the specifications 100%,
00:06:17and therefore if he does not adhere, he will not receive the funds. Three,
00:06:20and most importantly, you will buy from trusted parties, not
00:06:24intermediaries. That is, no one but intermediaries, traders,
00:06:28or ordinary people in the oil market
00:06:32accepts cash. But large and reputable companies
00:06:36that have commitments and long contracts. Okay, Doctor, does
00:06:39this, Doctor Khaled, mean that this is considered
00:06:43leap in oil imports to
00:06:46Syria? A qualitative leap not only
00:06:49in imports, in fact, not only in
00:06:52oil imports, but in general imports, meaning
00:06:56that we have begun to move
00:06:57from being
00:07:00traders, viewed by the international community as
00:07:03individual traders, to being dealt with as a real
00:07:06state with lifted sanctions,
00:07:09and guarantees for their rights. These big traders
00:07:13or companies, meaning that we have moved from the simple
00:07:17theoretical framework that was based on dealing with us as companies
00:07:20and individuals to a framework where they deal with us as a state
00:07:24with a central bank capable of guaranteeing rights, and with
00:07:28a credit you can rely on. Therefore, this is
00:07:31certainly a qualitative leap, not only in the oil sector, but in
00:07:34all goods that may enter Syria in the future.
00:07:38Very good. I welcome Dr. Musaab Al-Shabib, the energy
00:07:41researcher, again. From Idlib, Doctor, based
00:07:44on what Dr. Khaled
00:07:47mentioned, and moving to the executive part specifically for the energy sector,
00:07:51what does securing energy supplies to Syria
00:07:54through a regular letter of credit
00:07:57mean?
00:07:59And how can it be compared to previous supply
00:08:03mechanisms and the sustainability and flow of material
00:08:06to Syria, especially since we are dealing today with major American
00:08:09companies?
00:08:12Greetings, Professor Abdel Qader, to you, to our esteemed guest, and to all
00:08:15dear viewers. First, commenting on what
00:08:19our esteemed guest said, in my opinion, this is
00:08:22an experiment called "simulation,"
00:08:26meaning it is a practical simulation
00:08:29to begin to move in this
00:08:32real institutional direction
00:08:35that we all
00:08:38This direction is through banks,
00:08:42the governmental Central Bank, which acts as the intermediary
00:08:45and guarantor between the seller and the buyer, and which
00:08:49is the Syrian Petroleum
00:08:52matter? Our esteemed guest mentioned an important issue, which is the issue
00:08:55of intermediaries. In reality, we do not know how oil is purchased
00:08:59from these intermediaries, who may not have a strong CV
00:09:03in terms of supplies. The first benefit
00:09:06if this approach is adopted, and we hope it will be, despite
00:09:10the many challenges
00:09:13will face, perhaps we will talk about them,
00:09:17it will ensure stability in supplies, Professor Abdel Qader. We
00:09:21are now facing the biggest problem, which is the issue
00:09:24of supplies. You find that the material, whether
00:09:28it is diesel or gasoline, is cut off. Today, we have a diesel shortage today.
00:09:33diesel because there is no stability in the supply
00:09:37process. We await some shipments. Sometimes shipments
00:09:40are delayed. Weather conditions
00:09:43Today, if this institutional , banking, governmental
00:09:47approach is adopted, in coordination with international
00:09:50banks and companies, Vitol Company, ADNOC Emirati
00:09:54Company, Saudi Aramco, reputable and respected
00:10:00this context and begin the supply process. And here, the concept of
00:10:03forward contracts, which is
00:10:06still not effectively implemented in Syria,
00:10:10will be utilized, leading to price stability and establishing
00:10:15I think it is too early to talk about this issue, but
00:10:18we are now, as a start,
00:10:21as a simulation, as I mentioned to you, it can be promising,
00:10:26on the implementation and continuity in this
00:10:29matter. Okay, I return to Dr. Khaled, and I apologize
00:10:32for some sound issues with you,
00:10:36Dr. Musaab. Perhaps the colleagues are solving
00:10:39this problem. Dr. Khaled, when
00:10:42letters of credit are activated,
00:10:46and based on what you said, we have moved from the mentality
00:10:52the state. This requires
00:10:55from the parties that carry out purchasing
00:10:59and other financial and developmental procedures. In your opinion,
00:11:03what are the procedures that the Syrian
00:11:07Central Bank has taken to enhance this
00:11:10confidence?
00:11:13Sir, the issue of letters of credit originally
00:11:16arose historically to enhance the concept
00:11:19of trust. What are you telling the seller? The seller and buyer do not
00:11:23know each other. Assume there was no previous
00:11:27There is a strong party
00:11:31telling the seller, "I guarantee you the funds," and telling the buyer,
00:11:34"I guarantee you the goods." So the seller is assured
00:11:38of his money, and the buyer is assured of his goods having the same specifications.
00:11:42This is one. Two, where does the Central Bank get this
00:11:46power from? From its ability. It has cash reserves. Now, by the grace of God,
00:11:49we have
00:11:53trade. There is a budget that is not
00:11:59effort that occurred in recent months
00:12:02has started to accumulate.
00:12:05And investors and countries, my friend, monitor. When
00:12:08some people, for example, do not realize the importance of the Ministry
00:12:12of Finance issuing a treasury statement, and that it has a deficit,
00:12:15and it has a surplus, and it has resources, this is read as
00:12:19transparency, and therefore it is read as contributing to
00:12:24bank and its meetings and its technical responses to the International
00:12:28Monetary Fund, and all the statements that have been made and negotiations with countries,
00:12:32this is read as transparency and confidence. So the international
00:12:35bank, the bank, meaning the central bank or the Central Bank of Syria,
00:12:38has truly succeeded in proving that
00:12:42it has now gained the confidence of the international community,
00:12:46and that with this step, it has become a guarantor for all our
00:12:49purchases, meaning even, I assume, far from energy, even if I want to
00:12:53buy goods from China today, I used to be forced to send
00:12:57them to Saudi Arabia or send them to Turkey and then send them through the bank or
00:13:01send them through an exchange office. Now, the Syrian trader can go to
00:13:05any bank and tell it, "Open a letter of
00:13:08credit for me." Therefore, a letter of credit means that the bank
00:13:11guarantees the buyer's right to receive
00:13:14goods that match the specifications and are delivered
00:13:18on the specified date, and this is an important point in the case
00:13:21of energy. The problem you had was that you were dealing with an intermediary.
00:13:25He enjoys being untrustworthy. The intermediary takes
00:13:29money from you from the start. First, the intermediary
00:13:32always wants cash, not through the bank. These
00:13:36large companies do not agree to deal in this way,
00:13:39even if you have money. You take 100 million and give it to the company. No
00:13:43one in the world would accept 100 million dollars from you. They take
00:13:47a check from you, they take a promise or a letter from you. That's what they take from you.
00:13:51Okay, now if we move to dealing with the intermediaries
00:13:55who used to charge higher oil prices, who used to
00:13:58delay us, who used to give you poor oil specifications,
00:14:02then we have moved
00:14:05deal with large companies, and therefore these large companies, which have
00:14:08a reputation built over tens
00:14:11of years, will give you oil with the specifications you agreed
00:14:15upon. They will give you oil according to the supplies. They will give you
00:14:18oil even if you tell them, "I will agree with you for three months
00:14:21of supplies, for example, every week you supply me with a quantity
00:14:25of X." So they will agree and be truthful with you, because if they are not
00:14:28truthful with you, they will not receive their money and the payments that
00:14:32the central bank guarantees them. So we have indeed moved
00:14:37trade, not only in oil, but in all international
00:14:40trade with the countries of the world. Okay, we will move to other trades, but
00:14:44Dr. Khaled, some analysts used to link the sudden
00:14:47fluctuations that affected the Syrian currency
00:14:50to the deals that were made
00:14:56This
00:14:59by the Syrian Central Bank
00:15:02will it protect the Syrian currency today from these sudden
00:15:06fluctuations?
00:15:11Dr. Khaled. I was saying this is an important question.
00:15:15If you hear me, please proceed. And the answer to it is as follows:
00:15:19If we go back two years,
00:15:22liberation. If we go back
00:15:26time, the Syrian pound has not experienced real
00:15:29shocks, but rather it has experienced
00:15:32fluctuations subject to supply
00:15:34and demand. That is, sometimes we find it, for example, now,
00:15:38the current price is 140, 120,
00:15:40125, but these are not large fluctuations.
00:15:44This is a very, very important point, meaning,
00:15:47in the frozen days of the regime, it was 500, then
00:15:51it became 6000 and so on. We will hopefully not see this in
00:15:55Syria. We have not seen it and will not see it in the future. This is point
00:15:58number one. Point number two, letters of credit
00:16:01guarantee to the Central Bank that it can manage its
00:16:04cash flows, meaning that it knows that from now until six months,
00:16:08it has to pay in cash, for example,
00:16:10for wheat, a quantity of 400 million,
00:16:14for energy, a quantity of, for example, a billion. So it therefore
00:16:17guarantees the planning of its resources
00:16:21and its expenditures. And therefore, this contributes
00:16:24to the stability of the currency and will not contribute
00:16:29On the contrary, it will contribute to the stability of the
00:16:33currency significantly because you now have the ability to plan your resources
00:16:36and the ability to plan your expenses, and the entire
00:16:40matter is confined to the Central Bank, and this is the decisive factor. In the past,
00:16:44money was transferred to another country, perhaps in a van
00:16:48or in a car or a bag, and it was done through another
00:16:51country, and therefore another country benefited from it,
00:16:54not Syria. Now you have a central bank that manages the money.
00:16:57By the grace of God, the process of changing the currency is mostly over. The old Syrian
00:17:01currency.
00:17:03Yes.
00:17:08domestically and abroad. Okay, Dr. Musaab, I return to you.
00:17:12Since you mentioned the crisis
00:17:15today that some stations in Syria are witnessing due to the shortage
00:17:19of diesel or mazout. The
00:17:22question here is, what is perhaps the fundamental
00:17:25difference between the arrival
00:17:29of oil shipments that used to reach us in installments
00:17:32due to, as Dr. Khaled used to say, the complex
00:17:36operations that were taking place. And perhaps some people are hearing
00:17:39for the first time how purchasing operations used to
00:17:43be carried out, and today they will be flowing
00:17:45regularly
00:17:49and periodically. My voice is clear, Professor Abdel Qader. Your voice
00:17:51is clear. Please proceed.
00:17:54That is, in a nice phrase, it's like
00:17:58the difference between buying from a flea market and buying from a mall with
00:18:02a credit card, and in a civilized
00:18:04and digital way. And I still insist
00:18:08completely that this example perhaps summarizes the scene.
00:18:12But, Professor Abdel Qader, with all due respect to what our guest
00:18:16said, and I heard it in its entirety, and these are benefits that no
00:18:19scientific, technical, or academic person can deny
00:18:23in this context, but I focus on the part that we are still in the simulation
00:18:27stage. The simulation, in other words,
00:18:30means that we are now in this experiment initiated by the
00:18:34Central Bank, but will it be adopted in supply
00:18:38operations? On a personal level, I hope this happens, and
00:18:41we all hope it does, because it will create a proactive
00:18:45energy system, Professor Abdel Qader. What does a proactive energy
00:18:49system mean? In response
00:18:54the gas station, and I was coming from Jordan, and the gas station owner told
00:18:57me, "If your car is diesel, fill it with diesel now,
00:19:01because there will be a crisis in two days." God is my witness, Professor Abdel Qader.
00:19:05So I asked him, "How did you know that?" He said, "Because we ordered
00:19:08a shipment, and they didn't send it to us, which means there will be a diesel
00:19:12crisis, and the crisis happened today." What I want to say
00:19:15is that the Central Bank's
00:19:18adoption of this step, which is the letter
00:19:22of credit, will first remove and eliminate
00:19:26those who work in the black market, who sometimes extort
00:19:29the Syrian government. For example, you have to pay
00:19:32in advance, which means if you receive
00:19:36goods with 80% or 70% quality, for example, in gasoline,
00:19:39you will accept it reluctantly because you have no other
00:19:43options, and you don't want to have queues and a big problem.
00:19:47Now, with this method, which we hope will become an adopted
00:19:52and we move away from this extortion, we will have
00:19:56current and future contracts. We will have the
00:19:59establishment of a Syrian energy credit fund, because the problem
00:20:03now, which I fear, is what the Central Bank will face, which
00:20:07is securing foreign currency. I think that this issue,
00:20:10if it was, and it certainly is, studied and under
00:20:14study, then we would have moved to the
00:20:16process of contracting with
00:20:20reputable companies that have a high reputation in the field
00:20:23of energy supplies. And these companies, I believe,
00:20:27will have competition, and therefore
00:20:30many Syrians may now complain that the price
00:20:33of even petroleum products with us may be more expensive than
00:20:38some other places. The reason for that is that the black market
00:20:41dictates its terms. I believe that if this issue is adopted
00:20:44and we move from the issue of simulation to the issue
00:20:47of implementation and it becomes an adopted
00:20:50approach by the Central Bank, that it supervises
00:20:54and guarantees all transactions and supplies,
00:20:56first, we will
00:20:58end the issue of sudden
00:21:02crises. That is, 48 hours ago, you didn't
00:21:06know that there would be a diesel crisis. Now it has happened. The reason
00:21:09is the delay in supplies, which is, in fact, like a flea
00:21:13market. And that is why we hope and appreciate this
00:21:16step, but we do not want it to be just an experiment
00:21:21about it. No, it must be worked
00:21:25upon, and the deal
00:21:29with the American company should
00:21:31become an effective plan and take into
00:21:35account what our esteemed guest said regarding the budget,
00:21:38and we should have an observation and estimation
00:21:44now for several months to come. Okay, Dr. Musaab, before I return
00:21:47to Dr. Khaled, based on what
00:21:50you said, can this step
00:21:53enhance perhaps the concept
00:21:58the country, or will it push
00:22:02for us not to see a black market
00:22:05as you mentioned? Absolutely, Professor Abdel
00:22:08Qader. All international companies and all countries, even
00:22:12countries that are exposed to attacks due to, I mean, the American-Iranian
00:22:16war, and it is a source
00:22:19of energy. And in some other energy-exporting countries, they do not deal
00:22:22in a way that, unfortunately, we, of course, due to the war
00:22:26and due to the war waged by the regime against
00:22:30Syrians, and the process of establishment and launching is undoubtedly a difficult
00:22:34process, and I personally, by God, really appreciate
00:22:37the work of the Ministry of Energy. But the transition to this
00:22:41banking system, which will link the banking
00:22:44system in Syria with the global system, with all the banking
00:22:48challenges despite the lifting of sanctions, will certainly
00:22:52move the issue of energy to stability, so that the Syrian
00:22:55citizen no longer has the fear that whenever there is,
00:22:59as they say, a fuss here and a fuss there, gasoline runs out, then
00:23:02diesel runs out, then a shipment of poor quality gasoline arrives,
00:23:06which flooded social media, as you know, but rather
00:23:10it will move to the concept of energy stability,
00:23:13which will consecrate and establish the rotation of the production
00:23:16wheel. I will not hide from you, Professor Abdel Qader, that I am informed
00:23:20about many contractors' work.
00:23:24Many contractors during the past few days
00:23:27have raised the margin
00:23:30of, let's say, fear regarding prices and price
00:23:33fluctuations. The price of a digger is different, and the price of a truck
00:23:36is different, and the price of other things. So the machinery
00:23:39and the work have led to a change
00:23:43in the value of the tender, and thus they have raised the margin with the companies
00:23:46they deal with. So when you have energy
00:23:50stability, you have supplies, and these supplies are
00:23:53according to programs and are automated
00:23:56according to a digital electronic platform with clear data.
00:24:00Today, we suffer from supply chains.
00:24:03Supply chains today are irregular and do not take into
00:24:07account market needs or read the scene correctly,
00:24:10and therefore we have this bottleneck
00:24:14in the issue of fuels. Whether we move from
00:24:17a gasoline problem to a diesel problem, and from a Syrian problem, it is indeed a promising
00:24:21market that will not be satisfied with just securing
00:24:24derivatives for the domestic market, but rather Syria
00:24:27will be a gateway to the global market. Okay, Dr.
00:24:31Khaled, first, I want to
00:24:34ask you a question that Dr.
00:24:37Musaab also asked: Can this step affect
00:24:40the foreign currency held by the Syrian Central
00:24:44Bank?
00:24:47Look, in principle, we operate in a free economy,
00:24:50meaning that the government supplies
00:24:54or at least most
00:24:57energy goods are not subsidized. We saw that the latest plan
00:25:00announced by the Minister of Energy states that there
00:25:03are first, second, and third grades, and perhaps
00:25:07they are talking about subsidizing certain quantities of the third grade
00:25:11that go to bakeries and to
00:25:14farmers and so on. Therefore, these quantities, when they studied them,
00:25:18they are capable of handling them,
00:25:20but with large quantities, they are capable
00:25:24of recovering their price
00:25:28in advance from gas stations, distribution
00:25:31stations, and they can tell the Central
00:25:34Bank, perhaps there is support, Dr.
00:25:37Khaled, even if it is partial.
00:25:40100%,
00:25:44100%. The third part, as you said,
00:25:48I agree with you, but it is studied that this support is within
00:25:51the government's capabilities. But the larger part,
00:25:55the larger part of the energy is paid for by
00:25:58citizens, like the current gasoline situation. So you are selling
00:26:03to the ordinary citizen at this price, and it may decrease
00:26:07further because you are buying from foreign companies, and therefore you
00:26:11because you are now capable of planning, not
00:26:15like in the past. For example, today they sold
00:26:18you at $1.8, tomorrow they will tell you $1.9.
00:26:21No, here companies will commit to you for a longer period,
00:26:24and therefore you will be able to tell people, "Friends, I support
00:26:2820% because this is my capability and my capacity, and
00:26:3180%," or vice versa, he can support
00:26:3450%. So you can distribute, so there will be no
00:26:37problem. This is one. Two, what I want to tell
00:26:41you, Professor Abdel Qader, what I want to tell people
00:26:43is just to know the importance of this point. If we assume that
00:26:47the liberation of Syria that happened in December
00:26:492024 was a turning point and a starting
00:26:54Assad, then the speech of President
00:26:57in the General Assembly and the lifting of sanctions and so on, this opened
00:27:01another door in international relations. Now we have
00:27:04the application of this point. I believe that it
00:27:07is an opening in the economic field. Why an opening? Because
00:27:11it is the removal or confirmation of the removal of sanctions
00:27:14from a practical perspective, not from statements. Today, countries are telling
00:27:17you that I deal with you as a state that can
00:27:21guarantee your buyers within this state. You
00:27:24can import from me. You can deal with
00:27:28me. So Syria is now to be congratulated, by the
00:27:31way. Syria has now entered the regional system and has
00:27:35entered the international system. May God complete it. Excellent.
00:27:39I mean, okay, Dr. Musab, I mean, dealing
00:27:42today with major international companies
00:27:45in coordination also with one of the major
00:27:48American banks in the United States of America.
00:27:52Some people ask about the added value, I mean,
00:27:55we always go back perhaps to what
00:27:58the quality that sometimes affected
00:28:01gasoline and today
00:28:04the shortage that some
00:28:08in the country.
00:28:11Okay, first of all, this is something, of course,
00:28:14that is encouraging.
00:28:17documentary contract or documentary credit with major
00:28:20American companies happens,
00:28:24in my opinion, this is an opportunity for other companies
00:28:27to drool, as they say, to have a hand or to have a presence in
00:28:31the Syrian energy market. This is always
00:28:34Mr. Abdel Kader, I want to emphasize a point that
00:28:38the documentary credit guarantees payment
00:28:41and conforms
00:28:44to the agreed upon conditions, but it does not guarantee
00:28:47the quality of the product, meaning that the product must, even
00:28:51if it has يعني يعني سي
00:28:54a CV that confirms the technical specifications of the product
00:28:57that is supplied according to this documentary credit, it must be subject
00:29:01to a number of technical laboratory
00:29:04tests and at multiple stages, whether at the Banias
00:29:08refinery or samples are taken to the laboratories
00:29:12located in the Banias refinery or the Homs refinery. This is one.
00:29:15Two, regarding, I mean, I also have a concern about
00:29:19the issue of infrastructure for storage. When you
00:29:22have forward contracts and you have stable
00:29:25and continuous deliveries according to these contracts, the issue of
00:29:29storage comes up here. This issue must be seriously considered. Is
00:29:32it, for example, possible to use some of the tanks available in
00:29:36some neighboring countries or is it possible to store in a certain country and then deliver
00:29:39in multiple stages according to market needs?
00:29:43This is another challenge. The third issue is the issue of transparency
00:29:47and launching contracts and that the matters
00:29:50are completely clear so that the Syrian citizen participates in this
00:29:54matter and is informed of all the details.
00:29:58In fact, we also have the issue of testing reliable
00:30:01suppliers. It is not enough to just know the company name,
00:30:05but how it fulfills its obligations and that there is indeed
00:30:08a clear legal mechanism.
00:30:10In fact, all these issues are part of the challenges
00:30:14and even the issue of the banking system itself.
00:30:18The sanctions have been lifted. We also have the issue of the SWIFT system,
00:30:22but there are still, I believe, some
00:30:26constraints that relate to technical
00:30:28details. I believe the Central Bank is working on resolving these
00:30:32issues. In general, it is a great
00:30:35and anticipated step
00:30:37that corrects
00:30:40and balances with the global energy market
00:30:43and establishes