- Title: RUSSIA: Syria says reaches deal with Russia for oil products
- Date: 3rd August 2012
- Summary: MOSCOW, RUSSIA (AUGUST 3, 2012) (REUTERS) SYRIAN MINISTERS, INCLUDING SYRIA'S DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER FOR ECONOMIC AFFAIRS QADRI JAMIL AND SYRIAN OIL MINISTER SAYID HNEIDI AT NEWS CONFERENCE JOURNALISTS AT NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SYRIA'S DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER FOR ECONOMIC AFFAIRS QADRI JAMIL, SAYING: "We agreed on (Kofi) Annan's initiative because it goes along
- Embargoed: 18th August 2012 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Russian Federation
- Country: Russia
- Topics: International Relations,Economy,Energy
- Reuters ID: LVA8QBFHFPIVX27OEBJA5IBXXOL8
- Story Text: Syria has reached an agreement to send its crude oil to Russia in return for shipments of refined oil products, according to Syria's deputy prime minister for economic affairs.
Syria's deputy prime minister for economic affairs on Friday (August 3) said that Syria has reached an agreement to send its crude oil to Russia in return for shipments of refined oil products.
A delegation of economic officials, including the country's oil and finance ministers, were in Moscow for talks with Russian government and private sector officials on ways to alleviate the economic effects of sanctions on Syria.
Syria's deputy prime minister for economic affairs Qadri Jamil, who led the delegation, also spoke on former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan's announcement that he would quit as international peace envoy for Syria.
Jamil said Annan's departure would not affect Syria's policy in solving the crisis.
"We agreed on (Kofi) Annan's initiative because it goes along with the general goals that were given by the Syrian policy. Therefore it wasn't Annan's arrival that introduced the general ways of solving the (case) in Syria without violence. Also Annan's departure will not change Syria's policy in solving the Syrian crisis," Jamil told journalists Jamil said that negotiation was needed to solve the Syrian crisis.
"The political solution for Syria demands that everyone should sit down at the negotiation table and talk about how to exit the Syrian crisis and how to build Syria after the crisis. This, I think, will secure a democratic atmosphere for the Syrian nation to be able to choose with transparency and in a democratic way, who they want. Making preconditions is complicating the case and preventing it from reaching (results in) a democratic way," Jamil said.
The delegation also said that Syria and Russia had reached a trade agreement on oil for Syria, whose oil output has been cut in an armed rebellion.
"In regards to the oil sector, the subject (that we discussed with Russia) is exporting crude and importing oil derivatives, I can say that we have reached results and we established a road map, and through this we can work on providing the needs of the Syrian nation from these (oil) derivatives," Syrian oil minister Sayid Hneidi said.
Jamil also said Syria had asked for credit from Russia and that the size and terms of any loan would be decided "within weeks".
Russia, who along with China has defended Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from harsher sanctions in the U.N. Security Council, is one of Damascus' few remaining allies. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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