Syria joins China’s Belt and Road Initiative

China signed a deal with Syria months after a phone call between President Xi Jinping and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

According to China’s Global Times, Syria’s admission into China’s BRI took place at a ceremony in Damascus as both sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

The BRI is President Xi’s initiative which was kicked off in 2013 seeking to link land roads to build the trade network throughout the world. Nicaragua had also recently signed the BRI deal with China.