by Salah Takieddine
BEIRUT, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- All eyes are on Tripoli, north Lebanon's largest city for the role it could play after the end of Syria's war and the launch of its reconstruction phase, taking into consideration its close geographic location to Syria and its seaport that is witnessing an enlargement and modernization plan.
Since the beginning of 2017, a large number of official foreign delegations, investors and business people visited the port city to assess its potentials and capabilities for the possible upcoming role it could play in the reconstruction of Syria which is only 30 kilometers away from the city of Homs and Syria's coastal cities of Tartous and Lattakia.
"Tripoli has all the potentials to become a hub for foreign investors and international companies and we are periodically receiving delegations from across the world and they were all impressed by the location of the city and the investment opportunities it provides," Head of Tripoli's Chamber of Commerce, Agriculture and Industry Toufic Dabboussi told Xinhua.
"Tripoli is expected to play an important role in the reconstruction of Syria, and is currently considered of great interest for the international companies that we hope it would materialize after the end of the war in Syria and the launch of its reconstruction phase. We are ready to provide all kinds of facilities for investors as well as companies," he added.
According to the director of Tripoli's seaport that encompasses an economic free zone, Ahmad Tamer, the port witnessed an enlargement work on its basin and is currently able to receive the world's largest container ships with a 15.5 meters submersible, and a new container dock was constructed.
Tamer told Xinhua "Tripoli's port entered a new phase of modernization that is supposed to enable it play a pivotal role in the region, particularly with the new cranes that are considered ones of the most advanced in the world."
He pointed that work is continuing for the development of the seaport which has been for some years now "part of the main maritime routes to the main ports of the region in Turkey, Egypt and Jordan, and the expansion plan of the port is being funded through a loan for 67 million dollars provided by the Islamic Bank."
For his part, Antoine Ammatouri, CEO of "Gulftainer," the company that operates the containers dock, told Xinhua that "Russian and Syrian companies have started calling us to sign agreements and we are looking for playing a greater role in the future and would turn to be an important part in the plans of companies interested in the reconstruction of Syria."
