Assad regime survives on funds from Iran and Russia — Tehran is now dominant force in country, political analysts say

ANKARA – The Syrian economy has effectively ceased to function, and President Bashar al-Assad’s regime is almost entirely dependent on loans from Iran and some aid from the Russian Federation.

Economic studies by the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and independent economists paint a grim picture:

* Gross Domestic Product is now half of what it was three years ago, according to the IMF

* Oil production has effectively ground to a halt.

* Inflation is now at 50 percent

* Exports and imports are both reduced by 90 percent.

* Unemployment is at 50 percent.

“Syria as it was will never exist again. The economy will be smaller. The population will be smaller,” said Bassel Kaghadou, director of the UN program National Agenda for the Future of Syria, in a statement released on Nov. 21.

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