Benjamin Fève

Syria Political Economy Analyst & Consultant
Senior Consultant @KShaar_Advisory
Former @TheSyriaReport, @Think_Triangle, @BadilMedia
FR, EN, عر, TR

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

Another attack ISIS attack on a checkpoint situated a 19-minute drive from the Al-Omar oil field.

https://t.co/flQaP98tpD

While American and European energy companies may be interested in opportunities in Syria's oil sector, it will be extremely difficult for them to commit significant capital if the Islamic State continues to demonstrate the ability to operate in and around key energy-producing areas.

Investors can manage commercial, regulatory, and even political risks; persistent security threats are far harder to price, insure, or mitigate.

Without sustained improvements in security (which is already miles better than before) and a complete stop in ISIS activity, large-scale foreign investment in Syria's hydrocarbons sector will remain highly constrained, regardless of sanctions relief or the attractiveness of the underlying resource base.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

Another attack ISIS attack on a checkpoint situated a 19-minute drive from the Al-Omar oil field.

https://t.co/flQaP98tpD

While American and European energy companies may be interested in opportunities in Syria's oil sector, it will be extremely difficult for them to commit significant capital if the Islamic State continues to demonstrate the ability to operate in and around key energy-producing areas.

Investors can manage commercial, regulatory, and even political risks; persistent security threats are far harder to price, insure, or mitigate.

Without sustained improvements in security (which is already miles better than before) and a complete stop in ISIS activity, large-scale foreign investment in Syria's hydrocarbons sector will remain highly constrained, regardless of sanctions relief or the attractiveness of the underlying resource base.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for an attack in Raghib, which is situated a 25-minute drive from the Al-Omar oil field.

The Al-Omar field produces some of Syria's most exportable oil, a light, sweet crude; and reached production levels of up to 100,000 bpd in 2010.

As much as we may want to be optimistic about oil majors returning to Syria, no serious investor can ignore this context. Any credible market and risk assessment would flag ISIS activity near core energy infrastructure as a major red flag.

Three weeks ago, I stressed this exact point to @arabnews’s @AnanTello in her article, “What the government takeover of Syria’s largest oil field means for energy security.”

“We must also take into account the fact that the security situation in Deir Ezzor and around the Al-Omar field is not fully contained,” Fève said. “There are still risks from (Daesh) insurgents.”

READ: https://t.co/XcBOZ7c2Vn

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

Merci @CdricLabrousse 🙆🏼‍♂️

[Cédric Labrousse @CdricLabrousse]

On ne dit pas assez à quel point @BenjaminFeve est précieux sur la question syrienne.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

Just recorded a really interesting conversation for the first episode of PRISM Podcast on Syria’s economic recovery, reconstruction, energy politics, refugee returns, and evolving EU–Syria relations.

🎧 The Future of Syria: Economic Recovery and EU–Syria Relations
Listen: https://t.co/Bw3DDzBBW8

We discussed everything from electricity shortages and banking constraints to reconstruction risks, Gulf investment, the northeast’s political economy, refugee returns, and the challenge of turning political normalization into actual economic recovery people can feel in their daily lives.

A big thank you to Umutcan Yüksel of the European University Institute (EUI) for the invitation and discussion.

We also touched on some themes I’ve been working on recently regarding the gap between macro-level stabilization and the lived economic reality of ordinary Syrians, the risks of uneven recovery, and why implementation (not announcements) will ultimately determine whether Syria’s recovery is real.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

Worth listening to carefully.

A @muftahmag podcast interview with @ThomasPierret on Syria and the Left.

https://t.co/giRiOwFcEH

A wealth of knowledge, as always.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@PresidentofFKC bazılarına göre sadece bir meme değil
bak onlara
https://t.co/bfgsiqipKr

[AskinnNaz @yiyenvejetaryen]

@BenjaminFeve Şarkı çok kötü olmuş. Türkiye'nin ajanların staj yeri olduğunu tüm türk halkı bilmektedir. O yüzden içinizden en az birisi ajandı o gün. Türkiye'ye yıllardır çok fazla ajan gelir ve yakalanır. Halk için çok doğal bir durumdur. Ajan olmadığını söyleyenler daha da komik oluyor.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@karluktu https://t.co/852qQfV1Ia

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I turned the comments from people accusing me of being a spy into a song/video clip because I have a ton of work but felt like procrastinating.

Son tweetimin altındaki bana ajan diyen insanların yorumlarını, eğlenceli bulduğum için bir şarkı/video klibe dönüştürdüm.

Enjoy.🤗

Btw, I love Türkiye and the Turkish language, and if speaking it means I’m a spy, then I’ll gladly accept my promotion to regional intelligence coordinator.

Bu arada Türkiye’yi ve Türkçeyi seviyorum; eğer Türkçe konuşmak ajan olduğum anlamına geliyorsa, bölgesel istihbarat koordinatörlüğü terfisini memnuniyetle kabul ederim.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

Reminds me of last week, when I was buying an ice cream somewhere in Damascus at around 10:30 p.m., and I saw a lady speaking Turkish to the ice cream seller. So I immediately asked her in Turkish, “Are you Turkish? You don’t speak Arabic?”

She replied, “No no I am not Turkish, I am [European nationality].”

I was visibly confused, and asked: “why would a foreigner speak Turkish to buy ice cream in Damascus?” “I just love the language, actually,” she replied.

Still confused, we kept speaking Turkish together for a bit… then the ice cream seller asked me, in fluent Turkish (!), “Are you Turkish?”

I replied, “No, I’m French, but I speak Turkish. What’s going on here with everyone speaking Turkish?”

And there we were: two Europeans and one Syrian speaking Turkish together.

Then… an older guy jumped in behind me, asking me and the lady in… Turkish: “So, are you two Turks?”

“No, but are you?” we replied.

He was like, “No, no! I am Syrian too!”

And that’s how the four of us ended up speaking Turkish together for a few minutes in the middle of Damascus and eating like there was some glitch in the matrix.

Good times. Unfathomable a few years back. Unforgettable today.

[Abd alhade alani @abdalhadealani]

I hopped in a taxi in Damascus 🇸🇾 after Friday prayers، and a few minutes into the ride, I noticed the driver had a song playing, one of those tracks by the Turkish singer Sımga.

So I asked him: “Were you ever in Turkey?”
He looked surprised: “How did you know?”
I smiled and said, “You’re playing a Turkish song in the middle of Damascus, what do you mean how did i know?.”

He laughed and told me he’d lived in Bursa for eleven years but the moment the country was liberated, he came straight back, but part of him, he said, never quite left Turkey behind, We both laughed about it, and we even chatted a little in Turkish, (my Turkish language is broken and he mocked me too 😂)

Just last week, on my way to a film studio i was shooting here in Damascus, I was in another cab, a Yalla Go car, and the driver was playing Ibrahim Tatlises, Turned out he used to live in the Beyoğlu neighborhood in Istanbul.

When you walk into any mall here you’ll find Turkish and Ukrainian products filling the shelves, and people genuinely reaching for them.

Tomorrow, the Turkish brand LC Waikiki is officially opening a branch in Damascus. they’ve already put out the announcement.

Many of those who’ve returned home came back with Turkish university degrees or solid professional experience gained there, and they’re building things here with that same organized, structured mindset they picked up abroad.

And let’s not forget the obsession with Turkish dramas، entire families are glued to their screens watching all kinds of Turkish shows, even my own family has their two sacred hours every night, completely reserved for their favorite Turkish series.

Displacement was painful, there’s no doubt about it, but it also carried something with it too:

everyone who came back brought a piece of the world with them, and that’s quietly making its way into new Syria that we all trying to build together.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@evren__altay https://t.co/852qQfV1Ia

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I turned the comments from people accusing me of being a spy into a song/video clip because I have a ton of work but felt like procrastinating.

Son tweetimin altındaki bana ajan diyen insanların yorumlarını, eğlenceli bulduğum için bir şarkı/video klibe dönüştürdüm.

Enjoy.🤗

Btw, I love Türkiye and the Turkish language, and if speaking it means I’m a spy, then I’ll gladly accept my promotion to regional intelligence coordinator.

Bu arada Türkiye’yi ve Türkçeyi seviyorum; eğer Türkçe konuşmak ajan olduğum anlamına geliyorsa, bölgesel istihbarat koordinatörlüğü terfisini memnuniyetle kabul ederim.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@rubukkub https://t.co/852qQfV1Ia

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I turned the comments from people accusing me of being a spy into a song/video clip because I have a ton of work but felt like procrastinating.

Son tweetimin altındaki bana ajan diyen insanların yorumlarını, eğlenceli bulduğum için bir şarkı/video klibe dönüştürdüm.

Enjoy.🤗

Btw, I love Türkiye and the Turkish language, and if speaking it means I’m a spy, then I’ll gladly accept my promotion to regional intelligence coordinator.

Bu arada Türkiye’yi ve Türkçeyi seviyorum; eğer Türkçe konuşmak ajan olduğum anlamına geliyorsa, bölgesel istihbarat koordinatörlüğü terfisini memnuniyetle kabul ederim.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@twdehesapacti https://t.co/852qQfV1Ia

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I turned the comments from people accusing me of being a spy into a song/video clip because I have a ton of work but felt like procrastinating.

Son tweetimin altındaki bana ajan diyen insanların yorumlarını, eğlenceli bulduğum için bir şarkı/video klibe dönüştürdüm.

Enjoy.🤗

Btw, I love Türkiye and the Turkish language, and if speaking it means I’m a spy, then I’ll gladly accept my promotion to regional intelligence coordinator.

Bu arada Türkiye’yi ve Türkçeyi seviyorum; eğer Türkçe konuşmak ajan olduğum anlamına geliyorsa, bölgesel istihbarat koordinatörlüğü terfisini memnuniyetle kabul ederim.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@cubeb0 https://t.co/852qQfV1Ia

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I turned the comments from people accusing me of being a spy into a song/video clip because I have a ton of work but felt like procrastinating.

Son tweetimin altındaki bana ajan diyen insanların yorumlarını, eğlenceli bulduğum için bir şarkı/video klibe dönüştürdüm.

Enjoy.🤗

Btw, I love Türkiye and the Turkish language, and if speaking it means I’m a spy, then I’ll gladly accept my promotion to regional intelligence coordinator.

Bu arada Türkiye’yi ve Türkçeyi seviyorum; eğer Türkçe konuşmak ajan olduğum anlamına geliyorsa, bölgesel istihbarat koordinatörlüğü terfisini memnuniyetle kabul ederim.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@ihtilalsevenler https://t.co/852qQfV1Ia

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I turned the comments from people accusing me of being a spy into a song/video clip because I have a ton of work but felt like procrastinating.

Son tweetimin altındaki bana ajan diyen insanların yorumlarını, eğlenceli bulduğum için bir şarkı/video klibe dönüştürdüm.

Enjoy.🤗

Btw, I love Türkiye and the Turkish language, and if speaking it means I’m a spy, then I’ll gladly accept my promotion to regional intelligence coordinator.

Bu arada Türkiye’yi ve Türkçeyi seviyorum; eğer Türkçe konuşmak ajan olduğum anlamına geliyorsa, bölgesel istihbarat koordinatörlüğü terfisini memnuniyetle kabul ederim.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@Mucagcebe Hahahahah bro thanks for the support! Soon available in D&R and TeknoSA!

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I turned the comments from people accusing me of being a spy into a song/video clip because I have a ton of work but felt like procrastinating.

Son tweetimin altındaki bana ajan diyen insanların yorumlarını, eğlenceli bulduğum için bir şarkı/video klibe dönüştürdüm.

Enjoy.🤗

Btw, I love Türkiye and the Turkish language, and if speaking it means I’m a spy, then I’ll gladly accept my promotion to regional intelligence coordinator.

Bu arada Türkiye’yi ve Türkçeyi seviyorum; eğer Türkçe konuşmak ajan olduğum anlamına geliyorsa, bölgesel istihbarat koordinatörlüğü terfisini memnuniyetle kabul ederim.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

Reminds me of last week, when I was buying an ice cream somewhere in Damascus at around 10:30 p.m., and I saw a lady speaking Turkish to the ice cream seller. So I immediately asked her in Turkish, “Are you Turkish? You don’t speak Arabic?”

She replied, “No no I am not Turkish, I am [European nationality].”

I was visibly confused, and asked: “why would a foreigner speak Turkish to buy ice cream in Damascus?” “I just love the language, actually,” she replied.

Still confused, we kept speaking Turkish together for a bit… then the ice cream seller asked me, in fluent Turkish (!), “Are you Turkish?”

I replied, “No, I’m French, but I speak Turkish. What’s going on here with everyone speaking Turkish?”

And there we were: two Europeans and one Syrian speaking Turkish together.

Then… an older guy jumped in behind me, asking me and the lady in… Turkish: “So, are you two Turks?”

“No, but are you?” we replied.

He was like, “No, no! I am Syrian too!”

And that’s how the four of us ended up speaking Turkish together for a few minutes in the middle of Damascus and eating like there was some glitch in the matrix.

Good times. Unfathomable a few years back. Unforgettable today.

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

I had also more than a year and a half ago during my first trip to Syria the extent to which Turkish (and Turkey) was popular.

https://t.co/fnYpm33yED

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

9️⃣ Something that surprised much a lot was just how popular Turkey has become. Though this was always assumed, witnessing it firsthand was striking. The soft power Turkey has accumulated in Syria is immense. Many Syrians—Arabs, not just Turkmens—now speak Turkish, admire Turkey, and express gratitude to Erdoğan for his role in helping Syrians and Syria get rid of Assad. Regardless of how accurate this perception is, Turkey’s influence is undeniable.

There is near-universal agreement that Turkey will play a leading role in rebuilding Syria. Of course, since the unification of Idlib with former regime-held areas, Turkish products have flooded Syrian markets in Damascus.

The U.S., EU, and Gulf countries are sometimes mentioned, but Turkey is always mentioned.

[Dimitar Bechev @DimitarBechev]

Reminds of Ivan Vazov's trip to Varna in the early 1880s. He struck up a conversation with a local in Turkish only to discover, 10 mins later, the person was Bulgarian. "So why are you talking Turkish to me then?" "Well, you started first Sir".

[Benjamin Fève @BenjaminFeve]

@abdalhadealani I am not sure if we are talking about the same people but I spoke in Turkish with a few Syrian Turkmen around Marjeh/Governorate Square.

They were street vendors and currency traders. All look quite destitute.

[Charles Lister @Charles_Lister]

Excellent investor guides for #Syria -- kudos to @KShaar_Advisory & @1977Creative for putting them together.

Now it's time for @SecRubio to remove the #Assad-era State Sponsor of Terror designation, which remains a core obstacle to realizing this "chance at greatness."