How did the Tehran Marshall plan fail in Syria?: Reuters, photography, thousands of documents
propagandaReuters correspondents They managed to reach a wide treasure of documents during a visit to Iranian soft energy centers in SyriaIncluding diplomatic, economic and cultural offices.
They photographed approximately 2000 documentsIncluding commercial contracts, economic plans and official correspondence, and leave them in the same place without moving them. Then, used Reuters correspondents Artificial intelligence technology for analysis Documents.
On Thursday, May 1, Reuters news agency published a special report on Iran’s ambitious economic plan to rebuild Syria. The program, which was prepared in the form of an official study of 33 pages Through the political and economic section of the Iranian embassy in Syria, it is mentioned several times The American Marshall Plan.
According to a report issued by the Iranian embassy in Damascus, Marshall plan in the United StatesIn the afternoon of World War II, it was able to make Europe depend on the United States by “creating economic, political, social and cultural dependence.” Iran was also trying to implement the same approach to the Middle East and rebuild Syria, which was destroyed by multiple wars, Reuters said.
33 pages It was obtained while the Iranian embassy was looted in Damascus and when the Syrian capital fell in the hands of The rebels who opposed Bashar al -Assad.
The strategic report suggests this Iran is building an economic empire Meanwhile, it increases its influence on his ally, Syria, and making it the private “moon state”.
In addition to this strategic document, Reuters news agency conducted an interview with dozens of Iranian businessmen And the Syrians are in the context of his research, as he studied a network of Iranian companies operating in the gray areas for sanctions, that is, areas where sanctions are difficult to impose.
Reuters visited some Iranian investment projects That is stagnant for various reasons. Projects include religious places, factories and military facilities that were unable to advance due to the attacks of armed groups, local corruption, sanctions and bombings in Western countries.
- Among these investments, there is a power plant worth 411 million euros On the coast of Latakia That was built by an Iranian engineering company, however This is still not user.
- In addition, a $ 26 million railway bridge on the Euphrates River, which was built by an Iranian charity organization Associated with Iranian leader Ali Jamini It collapsed years ago as a result of an air attack by the American coalition and Syria that did not reconcile or completely pay the expenses related to the project.
About 40 projects appear in the documents left from the Iranian embassy only a small part of the total investments in Iran in Syria. However, only in this limited group, news agency Reuters estimate that the debts are waiting for payment From the Syrian government with Iranian companies at the end of the war, at least $ 178 million. Some former members of the Iranian parliament also according to the total debt of Bashar al -Assad’s government with Iran exceeding 30,000 million dollars.
In December, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Ismail Baji, expressed his hope that the new Syrian leaders will fulfill their obligations with Iran. However, this does not seem to be a priority for the new Syrian government.
“Iran has hit the Syrian people and needs a lot of time to recover.” For many in Syria, The departure of Bashar al -Assad and its Iranian -backed militia was the reason for the celebration And joy. But the Syrians who have been associated with Iranian companies and projects have a dual feeling, because with the departure of Iranian companies, many of them have been the source of their income.
Responsible for Iran’s economic plans in Syria
The person responsible for implementation Among Iran’s economic programs in Syria, Abbas Akbar, director of construction projects and member of the Revolutionary Guards, director of an institution called the headquarters for the development of economic relations between Iran and Syria.
The aim of the headquarters was to expand trade between the two countries and restore the capital that Iran spent During the Syrian civil war. The team that led him was the same group that prepared the 33 -page official report in which the Marshall plan for the United States was compared. Reuters says he had found messages with a greater signature at the Iranian embassy.
naturally, Iran’s economic presence in Syria dates back to the larger period. Group Mabna, one of the largest infrastructure companies in Iran, signed its first important contract in 2008 to build a power plant near Damascus. After a short time, the last contract was closed to build another power station Near Homs.
At the same time with the signing of the first The Mapna Group contracts, the economic relations of the two countries were an amazing leap. In 2011, Syria was wrapped in a wave of protests called The Arab Spring in the region.
propagandaIranian strategic investments in partner countries, including Syria, Iraq and Lebanon, have led to Create a Tiran regional axis It is called the “Axis of Resistance”; A network of armed groups and governments whose goal is to confront the influence of Israel and the West in the region.
The mapna group did not give up
In December 2011, operations in Syria entered a dangerous stage. Seven Iranian workers worked At Jandar power plant, they were kidnapped by the rebels, and according to reports, two of them died. However, Mapna has increased its investments. The company won decades to repair Syrian electricityWhich was born in 2015, electricity is less than half of its ability before the war. The most ambitious project was to build a power of power.
From the beginning, The project faced problems such as corruptionDelay in payments and low -quality workforce. The Syrian government ordered the use of contractors of the Assad family, according to the documents obtained. Syrian work engineer In the lazqiyeh project, he said that some Iranian workers also entered a project just because there are special links.
In November 2024, just one month before the fall of Assad, Mabna announced that the Latakia project had been submitted by about 50 % by that time. The letters of the Iranian embassy indicate that the government Reuters reported that the Syrians have amended the terms of the contracts and that Mabna was forced to cover the full cost of building the Latakia electric power plant.
propagandaMessage 2018 from Mapna Director, toBBAS Aliabadi, who is now the Minister of PowerShe was written in a complaint tone: “The Mapna group did not leave its brothers in the Syrian Ministry of Electricity in seven years of the civil war, when Foreign companies abandoned Syria”.
Mapna publicly did not publicly reveal the exact amount spent in Syria or the amount of this refunded investment. The company and the relevant officials did not respond Reuters students have comments requests.
Mabna’s problems were no exception, according to the Reuters research report. Many Iranian companies in Syria have faced similar crises. andAn another image, which included projectsThe deferred payments and additional costs, which were marginalized by Iranian officials, have also included contracts for delay and violations in payments and the employment of the problems of other Iranian companies.
Between 2015 and 2020, Iran and Syria have signed a series of agreements To compensate for the debts of Damascus, including the appointment of agricultural lands to Iran, licenses for mobile phones, housing projects, and sport mining concessions and oil exploration contracts.
propagandabut, Reuters report suggests that many of these projects They also faced the same problems related to sanctions, employees and security, and in the end they received some benefits.
Russia, the other ally of Syria, focused on more profitable sectors, such as oil and gas. In 2015, Iran spent about 6000 million dollars annually in SyriaAccording to United Nations estimates. Iranian officials described the estimate of exaggeration, but they did not publish any official figure.
