The West has chosen economy as a "suitable entrance" to deepen the Syrian crisis after the failure to enflame the situation through other ways, a Syrian economic expert, Adnan Abdul-Razzak, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

The Western countries have tried many scenarios in Syria to deepen the crisis, Abdul-Razzak said, and the last-ditch attempt was to throttle the country's economy.

However, the expert predicted that their attempts would not work. "They tried to test Syria through many aspects. They tried the social gate and tried to foment sectarian rifts. But all their attempts were to no avail," he said.

"They even tried the UN Security Council, but they also reached a deadlock... Now there is nothing left other than the economic door to knock on given its unparalleled significance," he added.

Abdul-Razzak said he believed that the economic pressures aim to undermine Syria's infrastructure and to control the course of events.

Due to the economic sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union and some Arab countries against Syria, most of the economic agreements signed previously between Syria and a number of foreign countries have been brought to a standstill, which has deprived the country of lucrative economic revenues, Abdul-Razzak said.

The Western sanctions have targeted a number of important sectors in Syria, mainly the oil and banking sectors. The losses of Syrian oil sector are estimated at more than 11 million U.S. dollars per day.

Syria's daily oil output is estimated at 380,000 barrels, part of which was exported to Europe to earn for the treasury around 11 million dollars.

Syrian Oil Minister Sufian Allaw recently told Xinhua that Syria's oil sector has lost more than 2 billion U.S. dollars due to the economic sanctions and sabotaging acts against oil facilities.

Abdul-Razzak slammed the sanctions as "immoral," saying that the biggest victims of the sanctions are the Syrian citizens, as the prices of basic foodstuff have skyrocketed while some other goods have become unavailable in the market.

This situation has created a suitable atmosphere for increased monopoly, an issue that has overburdened the citizens, he said.

The economic sanctions have also led to a 40-percent depreciation of Syrian pound and a 20-percent growth in the inflation.

Abdul-Razzak said he believed that there are other foreign and internal factors, including the government's monetary policy, contributing to the depreciation of Syrian pound.

Tourism, a main source of foreign currency for Syria, was affected most by the Syrian crisis, Abdul-Razzak said, noting that the sector had barely revenue in 2011 although the government had made efforts to attract tourists.

However, Abdul-Razzak showed an upbeat mood about the future, saying that the Syrian economy is still vigorous and trustworthy and there are some alternative markets for the Syrian products.

The central bank of Syria has a sufficient reserve of foreign currency and gold, which would appease concerns about a possible economic collapse in the country, Abdul-Razzak said.

"The Syrian economy would not collapse in the foreseeable future," he said, calling on the Syrian government to take rigorous and rational measures to protect the economy.