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DOHA, Apr 29 Syria sees opportunities for economic development in moving away from the dollar in favor of the Chinese yuan, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said during a meeting on Saturday in Damascus with Zhai Jun, Special Envoy of the Chinese Government for the Middle East.
«It is necessary to put forward an initiative and a way to achieve development and economic cooperation … Exemption from settlement in dollars becomes necessary. The BRICS countries can play a key role in this area in addition to choosing the Chinese yuan for trade settlements between countries,» he is quoted as saying Assad's words to his press office.
Zhai Jun arrived in Damascus from Beirut, where he held talks at the Lebanese Foreign Ministry.