Damascus, Syria - Recent Storyline: As the China International Import Expo (CIIE) continues to serve as a vital platform for international trade, Syrian businesses are seizing the opportunity to expand their reach, despite the challenges posed by Western sanctions. One notable participant is the BioCham company for natural oil extracts, founded by Roula Ali Adeeb, who is attending the expo for the fourth time. Her business was built on the Damascena rose - one of the oldest and most sought-after rose strains in the world. This unique rose is cultivated on her four-hectare farm adjacent to her factory, where she produces a diverse range of products, including rose water, rose hydrolat, herb seeds, and various beauty and health extracts. As the economy of a war-torn country like Syria is in tatters, Adeeb has faced many financial setbacks since the start of the domestic Syrian war due to the weak purchasing power for Syrians, the blockade on the country and inability to participate in any expos in Europe or the U.S. The deterioration continued till she was offered the chance to participate in the CIIE for the first time in 2018, which marked a turning point for her business. Adeeb's factory was damaged in internal clashes in Syria, but she did not give up on her life project. She repaired the damage and continued working, tackling all sorts of shortages in basic needs for production such as fuel, electricity power and work force shortages. Currently, the safety of her staff is now at stake as her establishment is located in southern Syria where a major escalation between Syria and Israel could unfold. Syria has been trying to set a foothold in the vast Chinese market as compensation for inaccessible global markets, and help is provided for those who wish to participate. The business exhibition of the world's first national-level exposition dedicated to imports has attracted about 3,500 exhibitors from 129 countries and regions this year. Notably, a record high of 297 Fortune 500 companies and industry leaders are attending the six-day expo from Nov 5. Shotlist: Damascus, Syria - Recent: 1. Aerial shot of factory; 2. Various of rose garden, Roula Ali Adeeb walking; 3. SOUNDBITE (English) Roula Ali Adeeb, founder, BioCham (starting with shot 2/partially overlaid with shot 3): "The concentration of the oil in the water is higher than anything that you can find anywhere. I'm doing this because I want to [popularize] the word 'Rose Hydrolat' from Damascus Syria." [SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 4. Various of workers processing rose in factory; [SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 5. Various of workers, Roula Ali Adeeb working in rose garden; 6. SOUNDBITE (English) Roula Ali Adeeb, founder, BioCham (partially overlaid with shots 7-8): "It is our biggest opportunity to actually be able to sell to China, no matter how little it is, because there is a market. It's hard to go into the European market; it's hard to go into the American market, it's hard. But the Chinese are actually welcoming. Every year, when I think about products and all this, I'll think about China." [SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] FILE: Shanghai, China - Date Unknown: 7. Various of BioCham's booth at previous CIIE, visitors Damascus, Syria - Recent: 8. BioCham's products; [SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 9. Various of factory, rose garden, workers; 10. SOUNDBITE (English) Roula Ali Adeeb, founder, BioCham: "We survived the really bad fights here in the area. Now we hope, in the southern region, if Israel comes to hit Syria, it will go over us. We are very close to the south. We worry." 11. Various of Assistant Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade of Syria working; 12. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Rania Alahmad, Assistant Minister of Economy and Foreign Trade of Syria: "Most of the world's countries organize expos mostly for promoting their own products but the CIIE does not focus on exports of Chinese products to the world, but on what can enter the Chinese market from outside. And this is why we need to take advantage of this chance by participating with competitive products." 13. Various of traffic. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland/Orient TV/Syria Alshaab TV/Zanoubia TV/Alhurra TV/ANN TV/Al Jazeera/Al-Arabiya TV]