China to Provide $ 16 million in Humanitarian Aid to Syrian People

Syria and China have signed a cooperation agreement on providing humanitarian aid worth $16.000.000 to the Syrian people.

The agreement, signed Sunday by head of Planning and International Cooperation Commission Imad Saboni and China’s Ambassador to Syria Qi Qianjin, states that two batches of humanitarian aid worth $16 million will be delivered to the Syrian people.

“The signed agreement comes within framework of constant cooperation between the Syrian and Chinese governments,” Saboni said, adding that China over the past years has offered great support for Syria at international gatherings to overcome the crisis in the country.

 He asserted that the executive program of the agreement will be signed soon in order to spend the amount in accordance with priorities defined by the Higher Relief Committee in the Ministry of Environment and Local Administration.

“The cooperation between the two countries has not stopped and there is a mutual determination to enhance cooperation in all sectors, especially in the field of investment and reconstruction,” he affirmed.

On his part, the Chinese Ambassador declared that the humanitarian aid being offered by his country to Syria proves the strong bilateral relations between the two countries.

 “We are looking forwards to enhancing bilateral cooperation in economic, social and humanitarian fields,” the ambassador said, asserting that the positive developments in the situation in Syria and the victories achieved by the Syrian Arab army, particularly in Aleppo city, will lead to enhancing cooperation between the two countries.

“We in China sympathize with the Syrian people who suffer from terrorism and we support reaching peaceful solution to the crisis in Syria based on preserving the state’s unity and fighting terrorism which is the enemy of peoples all over the world,” Qianjin concluded.

In 2004, Syria and China signed 9 agreements in the fields of water, agriculture, economy, loans, health, tourism, oil and gas. Also in 2003 the two countries signed an agreement to prevent double taxation.

In 2001, an agreement on trade, economic and technological cooperation was signed by Syria and China.

Basma Qaddour