Riyadh, Warsaw to Deepen Joint Strategic Partnership

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (right) and Robert Rostek, Poland’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (right) and Robert Rostek, Poland’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Riyadh, Warsaw to Deepen Joint Strategic Partnership

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (right) and Robert Rostek, Poland’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki (right) and Robert Rostek, Poland’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia has become a global player, and Poland is looking forward to a significant trade and investment movement, especially in the agricultural sector, revealed a senior Polish diplomat as Riyadh and Warsaw move towards strengthening their strategic partnership and expanding economic cooperation.

On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman met with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in Riyadh.

During the meeting, they reviewed friendly relations between the two countries and ways to enhance prospects for bilateral cooperation in various fields.

The Crown Prince and Morawiecki also tackled issues of common interest.

“The visit of the Polish premier is the first visit for a head of the Polish government to the Kingdom in 11 years,” Robert Rostek, Poland’s ambassador to Saudi Arabia, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Rostek affirmed that Poland is interested in developing bilateral ties with Saudi Arabia.

“Saudi Arabia is one of the main trading partners,” acknowledged Rostek, adding that his country looks forward to working closely with the Kingdom, especially in agriculture.

“Saudi Arabia is the largest importer of Polish agro-food products from all the GCC countries,” he noted.

“We believe that the real potential of our economies allows for a significant increase in the trade volume of the agricultural sector and many others,” asserted Rostek.

“Poland can potentially play an important role in strengthening supply chains to Saudi Arabia, logistics related to food security, storage facilities, and the provision of agricultural technology to Saudi producers and their partners, both in the Kingdom itself and the wider region,” he clarified.

The volume of trade exchange between Poland and Saudi Arabia until October 2022 exceeded $7.9 billion. Saudi exports to Poland amounted to more than $6.7 billion, of which $6.4 billion were oil exports and $283 million were non-oil exports.



Syria, World Bank Discuss Tools to Support Syrian Economic Recovery

People wait their turn in a queue outside an ATM in Damascus on April 16, 2025. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
People wait their turn in a queue outside an ATM in Damascus on April 16, 2025. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
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Syria, World Bank Discuss Tools to Support Syrian Economic Recovery

People wait their turn in a queue outside an ATM in Damascus on April 16, 2025. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
People wait their turn in a queue outside an ATM in Damascus on April 16, 2025. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)

Members of the Syrian government and a delegation from the World Bank discussed in Damascus tools to support Syria's economic recovery, the Syrian foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Sources told Reuters on Saturday that Syrian officials are planning to attend the annual spring meetings held by the International Monetary Fund and World Bank in Washington, D.C. this month, which would be the first such visit in at least two decades.

Syria has around $15 million in arrears to the World Bank which must be paid off before the international financial institution can approve grants and provide other forms of assistance.

But Damascus is short of foreign currency and a previous plan to pay off the debts using assets frozen abroad did not materialize, according to two people familiar with the matter.

A technical delegation from the World Bank met with Syria's Finance Minister Mohammed Yosr Bernieh on Monday, according to the Syrian state news agency Sana.
The meeting, which was the first public meeting between the Syrian government and the World Bank, included discussions on strengthening financial and economic ties between the two sides.
Bernieh also highlighted the negative effects of the international sanctions imposed on Syria and policies of the former regime on the country's financial and banking sector.