The documents were exchanged between the Syrian chargé d'affaires in Riyadh and Youssef al-Sadoun, the Saudi Foreign Ministry secretary for economic and cultural affairs.
In a press statement al-Sadoun said that this agreement will help to develop trade and economic relations between the two states by immediately canceling all non-customs restrictions on exchanged commodities and exempting all exchanged commodities and agricultural products from other customs fees and taxes in both states. All Syrian and Saudi commodities directly reciprocated and of national origin will be exempted from customs fees and other similar taxes as from the first of January 2002.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry official added that the agreement also states that existing customs fees will not be increased and no new taxes will be imposed. Commodities and products exchanged between the two states will receive the same treatment as commodities originating in them as regards standards, specifications, health and security conditions, fees and customs.
Economic relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia have made great qualitative and quantitative strides since the establishment of the Joint Committee on Bilateral Cooperation. Syrian-Saudi relations have been good for some decades, but their improvement accelerated in the 1970s, especially after the signing of the economic agreement between the two states in 1972.
