A ship carrying wheat has arrived in Syria’s Latakia port, the first such delivery since former President Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December, the government said, as it pushes to boost an economy ravaged by nearly 14 years of ruinous civil war.

Traders say Syria has this year been largely relying on overland imports from neighbours.

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Officials of the new government led by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa say that while imports of wheat and other basics are not subject to sanctions from the United States or United Nations, challenges in securing financing for trade deals have deterred global suppliers from selling to Syria.

The Syrian General Authority for Land and Sea Borders said in a statement that the ship carried 6,600 tonnes of wheat. It did not identify the nationality or destination of the boat, but one regional commodity trader told the Reuters news agency it was from Russia.

Russia and Iran were Syria’s primary military and economic backers under al-Assad. They previously provided most of Syria’s wheat and oil products, but stopped after opposition fighters swept through the country in triumph and al-Assad fled to Moscow.

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Syria’s border authority called the shipment “a clear indication of the start of a new phase of economic recovery in the country”, adding that it should pave the way for more arrivals of vital supplies.

Al-Sharaa’s government is sharply focused on economic recovery after 14 years of conflict and has also been making efforts to open travel routes to the country.

Most international airlines suspended operations to and from Damascus in 2012 amid the Syrian government’s violent crackdown on protests that began in 2011 and the subsequent civil war that drew in multiple outside actors.

However, in January 2024, several airlines resumed service at Damascus International Airport following an announcement by the Syrian Civil Aviation Authority that international flights would be accepted.

On Saturday, a Syrian passenger flight departed on Sunday for the United Arab Emirates (UAE), marking the resumption of air travel between the two countries.

A UN official said on Saturday that Syria’s authorities should also begin the process of economic recovery, without waiting for Western sanctions imposed under al-Assad’s rule to be lifted.

“Waiting for sanctions to be lifted leads nowhere,” Abdallah Al Dardari, the regional chief for Arab states at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), told the AFP news agency in an interview in Damascus.

Al Dardari said this process should include “projects… directly affecting citizens”, the provision of services by civil society, particularly in education, and “the rapid improvement of public services”.

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“People need to feel the improvement quickly … especially in such a difficult period,” he said. “With a clear vision and well-defined priorities, once the sanctions are lifted, funding will flow into Syria.”

Some countries, including the US, have said they would wait to see how the new authorities exercise their power and ensure human rights before lifting sanctions, opting instead for targeted and temporary exemptions.