Donald Trump responded positively to the promotion of a land corridor under the Damascus administration led by Ahmed al-Sharaa as an alternative route to the Strait of Hormuz for transporting energy and goods. Trump quoted the assessment in a post of his own and said, “This is great.”
The assessment presented Syria as a relatively stable route and a country seeking to become the center of the Middle East. It also argued that disruptions to maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz caused by U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran had created an opportunity for the Damascus administration.
Agreement reached in Washington on oil pipeline
An agreement providing for the reconstruction and resumption of operations of the crude oil pipeline between Iraq and Syria was signed in Washington on July 18. The start of reconstruction on the same day was announced.
Tom Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Ankara and special representative for Syria and Iraq, said in a speech at the signing ceremony that agreements on the oil pipeline could begin a process that would make the Strait of Hormuz secondary in energy supplies.