SilkLink Fiber Optic Cable Project

Project overview

SilkLink is a national initiative to build and operate Syria's main fiber-optic backbone, the core of the domestic internet, spanning about 4,500 km. The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology announced it on 13 May 2025 with a total capacity of up to 100 terabits per second, and the project page on the ministry's website (last updated 27 April 2026) cites an initial capacity of at least 200 terabits per second, expanding to 500. It aims to connect Syrian cities and position Syria as a digital corridor between Asia and Europe, with a submarine cable landing station in Tartus and domestic data centers.

On 7 February 2026, Saudi Arabia's stc signed the implementation agreement after a multi-stage competition, with an investment exceeding 3 billion Saudi riyals (roughly 800 million to 1 billion US dollars, depending on the source). The infrastructure is to be delivered through a partnership in which stc will hold 75% and the Syrian Sovereign Fund 25%, according to stc's disclosure to the Saudi Exchange (Tadawul).

Status (as of May 2026). According to Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdulsalam Haykal, the ministry entered the implementation stage of SilkLink (interview published on 10 May 2026) and was working on implementing it on 18 May 2026 (SANA). He explained that this stage covers technical, preparatory and organizational work that precedes civil works.

Objectives

• Improve internet quality within Syria.
• Raise the capacity available to licensed telecom operators and service providers.
• Establish the country as a regional digital hub for data transfer and international communications.
• Use Syria's geographical location as a modern extension of the historic Silk Road, according to the Ministry of Communications.

Geographical route and infrastructure

According to the ministry's statement of 13 May 2025, the planned network spans approximately 4,500 kilometers of optical fiber and includes:

• A complete link between Damascus and Aleppo.
• Switching centers in Palmyra, the Eastern Region, and the Southern Region.
• A submarine cable landing station in Tartus on the Syrian coast.

The project includes activating regional connection points with Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey and providing a land route linking Europe to Asia as a parallel to existing maritime routes, according to the ministry. The 25 February 2026 update below, citing Submarine Networks, names Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey as connection points.

The project page on the ministry's website says the network covers all governorates (278 sites, the final points of presence after the field survey), with five internet exchange points in Tartus, Damascus, Aleppo, Palmyra, and Qamishli, and border crossing points in Daraa, Kharbet Awad, Aleppo, Idlib, Al-Tanf, Al-Bukamal, and Qamishli.

Implementation phases

According to the project page on the ministry's website, the project is delivered in two phases (Minister Abdulsalam Haykal said on 7 February 2026 that the two phases run between 18 and 48 months):

• Phase 1 (within 18 to 24 months): activating the main national routes, operating the landing station in Tartus, two internet exchange points in Damascus and Tartus, two Tier III data centers in Damascus and Tartus, metro rings in the main cities, and initial border crossing points.
• Phase 2 (by year 4): expanding the backbone east and northeast, operating a second landing station on the coast, activating Al-Bukamal and Qamishli, adding three exchange points, and raising the number of data centers to five.

The 25 February 2026 update below, citing Submarine Networks, describes both phases as running within 18 to 24 months.

Parties and license

According to the project page on the ministry's website, the agreement involves four parties: the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (oversight and coordination of delivery), the Telecommunications and Post Regulatory Authority (licensing, oversight and regulation), stc (investor and operator), and the Syrian Sovereign Fund (strategic local partner). A joint operating company is to be formed between stc and the Fund.

• The license runs for 15 years, with one renewal option of five years subject to defined performance and growth indicators.
• The project provides wholesale transport services only, to licensed telecom operators and service providers inside Syria.
• Ownership of the new infrastructure passes to the state as soon as it is built, and the joint operating company will keep the economic usufruct rights for the duration of the license.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the SilkLink project?

SilkLink is a national initiative, announced by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology on 13 May 2025, to build a main fiber-optic network of about 4,500 km across Syria. According to the ministry, it aims to connect Syrian cities and link Asia to Europe.

Who is implementing the project and at what cost?

Saudi Arabia's stc signed the implementation agreement on 7 February 2026, with an investment exceeding 3 billion Saudi riyals (roughly 800 million to 1 billion US dollars, depending on the source), in partnership with the Syrian Sovereign Fund, where stc will hold 75% and the Fund 25%, according to stc's disclosure.

What route does the cable follow?

The network covers approximately 4,500 kilometers, including a link between Damascus and Aleppo, switching centers in Palmyra and the Eastern and Southern regions, and a submarine landing station in Tartus.

Which countries does the project connect to?

The ministry's statement of 13 May 2025 includes regional connection points with Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey, forming a land route between Europe and Asia.

What is the project's status?

As of May 2026, the Minister of Communications said (statements of 10 and 18 May 2026) that the ministry had entered the implementation stage and was working on implementing SilkLink. He explained that this stage includes technical, preparatory and organizational work that precedes civil works. Details are in the updates below.

Update — 2026-02-25

According to the specialist publication Submarine Networks on 25 February 2026, Saudi Arabia's stc Group holds a 75% stake in the joint venture while the Syrian Sovereign Fund retains 25%, against a total investment of SAR 3 billion (about USD 800 million).

The scope, per the same source, covers more than 4,500 km of optical fibre across Syria, data centres, a submarine cable landing station in Tartus, and regional interconnection points with Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, delivered in two phases over an estimated 18 to 24 months. Developing Telecoms reported on 9 February 2026 that the initiative originated with Syria's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, which launched it in May 2025, and that stc won the project through a competitive tender.

Sources

• https://www.submarinenetworks.com/en/systems/asia-europe-africa/silklink/stc-group-signs-agreement-to-implement-silklink-project-in-syria
• https://developingtelecoms.com/telecom-technology/optical-fixed-networks/19731-stc-wins-bid-for-syrias-us-800m-silklink-fibre-project.html

UPDATE 10.05.2026

The minister says the project has entered the implementation stage. In an interview published by Syria TV on 10 May 2026, Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdulsalam Haykal said the ministry had entered the implementation stages of SilkLink and that stc was now physically present in the ministry building. He said the company had rented an office in Syria and that its team had begun meetings with many contractors and equipment suppliers in recent weeks to prepare for starting the works.

What implementation means. The minister explained that implementation does not mean digging and laying fiber alone, but covers the technical, preparatory and organizational stages that precede civil works. He said civil works could begin within two to three months, with implementation running about 18 months under the timeline.

UPDATE 18.05.2026

The ministry says it is working on implementing SilkLink, with its international gateway through Daraa. In statements to SANA on 18 May 2026, during a visit to Daraa Governorate, Minister Haykal said the ministry was currently working on implementing SilkLink, which he described as two projects within one. The first is a unified national backbone network linking the southern, central, eastern, northern and coastal regions with Damascus. The second concerns international supply, connecting Syria to the world through a cable landing point on the Syrian coast and running south to the Nassib border crossing with Jordan.

The minister said he had visited the international interconnection point at the Nassib crossing in preparation for the link with Jordan, and that SilkLink's international gateway into Syria would be through Daraa.

UPDATE 13.09.2026

SilkLink to distribute international capacity inside Syria, according to the ministry. The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology said in a statement carried by SANA on 13 September 2026 that an agreement had been signed to build the Ebla submarine cable between Tartus and Cyprus, with service expected to start in early 2028. It added that it plans a Syrian landing station on the Medusa cable.

The ministry presented the two projects as complementary to SilkLink, which it said is developing an open-access national fiber backbone that links the coastal landing stations to cities and data centers, to licensed operators and to land border crossings, so that international capacity can be distributed inside Syria. Minister Haykal said SilkLink would carry out that distribution over its open-access national network.