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Syria Awaits Airbus Team in Move to Buy Jets
By Andrew England in Abu Dhabi and Peggy Hollinger in Paris
Financial Times
Syria is expecting a delegation from Airbus to arrive in Damascus on Thursday as it attempts to strike a deal that would enable Syrianair to buy 50 passenger jets from the aircraft
manufacturer, in spite of US sanctions, said a government official.
Abdullah Dardari, the deputy prime minister for economic affairs, told the Financial Times the Syrian government would like a “strategic co-operation
agreement” with Airbus. The Arab government hopes to lease six aircraft for Syrian-air, the rundown state-owned carrier, then purchase 14 aircraft that will be delivered between 2010 and 2016.
It would also like to have the
option of buying another 36 jets up to 2028, as well as technical assistance to restructure the Syrian carrier.
The multibillion dollar order list would include two 350 jets with the remainder from Airbus’s 320 and 330
range, said Mr Dardari.
However, any deal would require approval from Washington as US sanctions imposed in 2004 prevent the export of any goods to Syria that have a US content of 10 per cent or more. Airbus jets include
between 10 per cent and 40 per cent of US-made components, depending on the model.
Airbus officials have privately acknowledged that there have been contacts with Syrian officials, but declined to comment on the nature
of talks or a potential visit by officials to Damascus.
“We will act only in full compliance with the law and no decision about any deal has been taken,” said an Airbus official.
A person close to the situation
said the four founding governments of Airbus – France, Germany, the UK and Spain – had been briefed after the initial contact six months ago. In a sign that Europe’s relationship with Syria is warming, the four governments
allowed preliminary discussions to continue to determine whether a deal could be negotiated that would not contravene US sanctions.
The European aircraft group has since approached the US Department of Commerce to find
out whether it would consider granting a licence to re-export US content to Syria. If the answer is positive, Airbus would then decide whether to pursue formal talks on a deal.
“For us in Syria we are buying from Airbus,
the second phase regarding the American sanctions is something that Airbus has to deal with,” Mr Dardari said.
Nicolas Sarkozy, French president, attended a summit in Damascus earlier this month and has been at the
forefront of Syria’s tentative steps back into the international fold. “There were two obstacles facing Syria buying Airbus: there was a French government veto from [former French President Jacques] Chirac and the American
sanctions. Let’s say we have overcome the first one,” Mr Dardari said.
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