Assad Sheibani also said that Syria’s new constitution will represent all communities in the country.

Syria’s new foreign minister says Syria hopes to follow in the footsteps of economic powerhouses such as Singapore and Saudi Arabia as it begins to slowly rebuild after nearly 14 years of turmoil. civil war.

“We need help from the international community to help us carry out this new experiment,” Assad Shabani said Wednesday at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. He emphasized that the Syrian transitional government is already establishing energy partnerships with several Gulf countries.

He also pledged that Syria’s new constitution would represent all communities in the country and reiterated calls for an easing of international sanctions that continue to cripple Syria’s economy.

“The biggest challenge is economic sanctions. We inherited a lot of problems from the Assad regime… but lifting economic sanctions is key to stability in Syria,” Shabani said during a televised event with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Although some Western countries have moved to restore ties with Damascus since former President Bashar al-Assad took office expelwho remain wary of the country’s new rulers, led by former rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).

“They always ask us how to guarantee the rights of (this or) that group and how to guarantee the rights of women – in Syria we will all be bound by the constitution and the rule of law,” al-Shabani said.

A committee of experts will be set up to draft a new constitution – a process that may require Up to four years – Shabani said all “different groups in Syria” would be included, including women.

Earlier this month, Shabani visited Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, where he discussed strengthening ties and trade.

During a recent visit to Damascus, the Gulf Prime Minister said that Qatar has pledged to provide 200 megawatts of electricity to Syria initially and gradually increase the amount.