Syria's Prime Minister on Subsidy Reforms

One of the means by which the Syrian government has built its relations with the population under its control is the system of subsidies for various basic goods. However, faced with a severe economic crisis since late 2019, the government has recently decided to cut subsidies from segments of the population. In short, the subsidies are now subject to various kinds of means-testing. These decisions regarding subsidies are the primary reason behind the ongoing round of protests in the southern province of al-Suwayda’, whose population is primarily Druze. The rationale for the decisions is explained in more detail by Syria’s prime minister Hussein Arnous, speaking to the government-aligned newspaper al-Watan. The article featuring the paper’s discussion with him was published on 10 February. I translate it in full below.