The Syrian Future Movement welcomes the arrival of three ships carrying 14,000 tons of American flour at the port of Tartus on Tuesday, December 16, 2025. This shipment, part of a UN aid program through the World Food Programme (WFP) and with direct US funding, aims to support public bakeries and bolster strategic reserves of essential food commodities.
The Syrian Future Movement affirms that this shipment represents a vital contribution to addressing the severe food challenges facing the Syrian people. According to a joint report by the World Food Programme and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) for 2025-2026, approximately 12.9 million citizens – more than half the population – suffer from acute food insecurity.
This support comes at a time when the Syrian agricultural sector is grappling with the effects of recurring droughts and climate change, resulting in a decline in grain production to only 1.2 million tons in 2025, compared to a historical average exceeding 4 million tons. This makes importing grain and flour an urgent necessity to ensure the availability of subsidized bread as a daily staple for millions of families.
The Syrian Future Movement appreciates the effective coordination between the relevant government agencies in receiving and distributing these shipments. It also commends the arrival of similar shipments in the past, such as the five ships that carried large quantities of wheat to the ports of Latakia and Tartous on December 5, 2025, which helped alleviate pressure on bakeries and local markets.
The Syrian Future Movement also appreciates the humanitarian role of international donors in providing this aid without direct political conditions, reflecting a shared commitment to alleviating the suffering of civilians.
In the same vein, the Syrian Future Movement emphasizes the importance of diversifying food import sources and strengthening equitable international partnerships, while ensuring the legal and transparent resolution of any outstanding contractual obligations. This is exemplified by the handling of recent trade disputes related to grain supplies, which recently saw lawsuits filed by Russian companies, such as “Balada,” against official Syrian institutions, as announced on December 10, 2025, seeking substantial financial compensation.
Such conflicts remind us of the need to carefully review international contracts to ensure their alignment with national interests and to avoid any obligations that could compromise economic sovereignty.
The Syrian Future Movement warns against the dangers of prolonged reliance on foreign aid, however valuable its humanitarian impact may be during the current transitional phase. It calls for a comprehensive national strategy to achieve food self-sufficiency through the rehabilitation of agricultural lands, support for farmers with seeds, fertilizers, and modern irrigation systems, investment in climate change adaptation projects, and the development of port and storage infrastructure to ensure greater efficiency in import and distribution.
The Syrian Future Movement reaffirms its full commitment to supporting all national and international efforts that contribute to building a new, strong, and food- and economically independent Syria, while preserving full sovereignty over resources and ports, and rejecting any interference that infringes upon the dignity or future of the Syrian people.
