DAMASCUS, SYRIA (JULY 13, 2025) (ANADOLU - ACCESS ALL) SHOTLIST: 1. VARIOUS OF PRESS CONFERENCE 2. DPW MANAGER SULTAN BIN AHMAD AL-SULAIM SPEAKING AT PRESS CONFERENCE 3. SYRIAN LAND AND SEA BORDER GATES AUTHORITY'S HEAD KUTAIBA AHMAD BADAWI SPEAKING 4. VARIOUS OF PRESS MEMBERS ASKING QUESTIONS 5. DPW MANAGER SULTAN BIN AHMAD AL-SULAIM SPEAKING AT PRESS CONFERENCE SCRIPT Syria sealed an $800-million deal on Sunday with Dubai Ports World (DP World), one of the world’s largest port operators, local media said. According to the state news agency SANA, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa attended the signing ceremony of the agreement. SANA called the deal “a strategic step aimed at strengthening port infrastructure and logistics services in Syria.” In May, Syria’s General Authority for Land and Sea Ports signed a memorandum of understanding with DP World, agreeing on a comprehensive investment in the development and operation of a multi-purpose terminal at Tartus Port on the country’s Mediterranean coast. The agreement came as the first deal announced by Syrian authorities since US President Donald Trump lifted sanctions on Syria on June 30. Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s leader for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia in December, ending the Baath Party regime, which had been in power since 1963. A new transitional administration led by Sharaa was formed in Syria in January.