Al-Assad: Syria moving ahead with development plans

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday said that "despite the difficult situations we live as citizens and we will go ahead with our development plans to improve living standards and continue the economic, political and administrative reform and fight corruption to include all that offend the people and the nation's interests."

President al-Assad said in a speech to the people that the "international pressures and challenges as well as the pitiful Arab situation which do not raise optimism were motivations for us to depend on ourselves and on our own capabilities in the first place."

The President added that Syria "will invest capacities and capabilities in the best means, and will widen the scope of decision making to include all national honest efforts for the benefit of the reform and development process."