Baladi News - Agencies
Jordan said on Tuesday more talks with Syria were needed before an important border crossing shut for three years as a result of its neighbour’s war could reopen to serve regional trade, Reuters news agency reported.
The closure of the Nassib crossing in 2015 cut a crucial transit route for hundreds of trucks a day transporting goods between Turkey and the Gulf, and Lebanon and the Gulf, in multi-billion dollar annual trade.
Damascus, which retook the crossing from the opposition last July, hopes to reopen the Nassib route because it is vital to its hopes of reviving Syria’s shattered economy and rebuilding in territory under its control.
But Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said technical committees between the two countries which began talks in the middle of September were still working out the practical arrangements.
“The border will open after the technical committees end all the necessary arrangements and measures needed to guarantee opening the borders serves the common interests of the two countries,” Safadi said after talks with his Lebanese counterpart.
Jordan has denied it agreed on a date to reopen the crossing after Syria announced on Sept. 29 that movement of traffic and goods had begun. Syria retracted that announcement later that day, saying it would reopen on Wednesday October 10.
Source: Reuters news agency.