Germany's development minister is visiting Syria on a trip meant to underline Berlin's support for economic reform, her ministry said Tuesday. Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul set off Tuesday on the three-day trip, her first to the country, where she plans to meet Abdullah al-Dardari, the deputy prime minister for economic affairs, and other Cabinet members. «We hope that our cooperation will bring Syria closer to Europe; and that Syria will make a contribution to peace, security and stability in the region,» Wieczorek-Zeul said in a statement released by her ministry. Al-Dardari visited Berlin in February, when the German ministry said it planned to set up a coordination office in Damascus. Wieczorek-Zeul will inaugurate the «German house of economic cooperation» in Damascus during this week's visit, which also will take her to Aleppo, her ministry said. It said the focus of her visit would be on economic reforms supported by Germany. Those include making administration more efficient, setting up an independent central bank and modernizing Syria's water sector. Wieczorek-Zeul also plans to seek information on the situation of the more than 1 million refugees from neighboring Iraq, the Associated Press reported.
