Turkey and Syria are all set to hold a series of meetings, with the aim of deepening economic ties, with Ankara adding the Western Asia country to its target export markets list in 2026. Bilateral engagements between the countries have been increasing since the removal of the Bashar Assad administration, while Syria’s neighbours also seek broader cooperation in areas including industry, transportation and energy.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, in the first week of April, visited Syria, where he met Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. The diplomatic exchanges focused on regional developments and security issues, as well as ways to strengthen bilateral ties and expand economic cooperation.
The first meeting of the Turkey-Syria Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) will take place on 7th April. The event will likely be co-chaired by Trade Minister Omer Bolat and Syrian Economy and Industry Minister Nidal al-Shaar. Simultaneously, a “Turkey-Syria Business and Investment Forum” will also be held with the participation of business representatives from both countries.
The forum is expected to bring together companies from the energy, construction, healthcare, food, agriculture, livestock, logistics, education and textile sectors for bilateral meetings. Panels on logistics, banking and contracting have also been planned.
Discussing the growing Turkey-Syria trade, Ankara’s exports to Damascus rose by nearly 60% in 2025 to USD 3.5 billion, up from USD 2.2 billion a year earlier. The largest export category was milling products, malt, starches, inulin and wheat gluten, totalling USD 232.7 million.
In the first two months of 2026, exports climbed a further 26.7% year-over-year to more than USD 666.7 million. The figure was the highest January-February tally to Syria since the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) began publishing the data in 2013.
Motor vehicles, tractors, bicycles, motorcycles and related parts and accessories were ranked as the top export category, as shipments totalled USD 72.7 million.