Contrary to recent political and economic movements regarding the possibility of Arab economic openness with Syria, the Nassib border crossing between Syria and Jordan continues to close its doors to the movement of passengers and trucks loaded with goods early, specifically before six p.m, as a result of the Caesar Act. This has had an impact on the volume of trade, and the number of trucks transiting towards Gulf states.
Most analyses suggest that this is caused by U.S. pressure on Jordan to prevent trade and investment relations between the two sides from returning to normal.
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Although the U.S. has agreed to exclude the project to transport gas from Egypt and electricity from Jordan to Lebanon through Syrian territory from the sanctions of the Caesar Act, the administration continues to closely monitor the economic movements of official and private Jordanian entities, and intervene directly through the commercial attaché in the Jordanian capital.
Sources in the Syrian Ministry of Transport reveal that the ministry asked its Jordanian counterpart to open the crossing to the movement of people and goods throughout the day. When the Jordanian side said it couldn’t meet the request, the ministry returned to propose extending the opening hours of the crossing beyond 6 o’clock, but the Jordanian side apologized for the time being.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
