LONDON, - Syrian raw sugar imports have jumped in recent weeks as the country bolsters local stocks at the same time as Russia has stepped up its support for ally President Bashar al-Assad, trade sources said. The flows of sugar are part of a surge in shipping traffic to the country with more than 100 cargo vessels carrying goods arriving recently in the biggest buildup of shipping for over a year. The sources said the raw sugar was likely to be mainly for the Middle East Sugar Refinery, owned by the Akhras family, which has been operating at below its full capacity of 600,000 tonnes a year. The refinery, located 50 km south of Homs, is still believed to be operated by Tarif Akhras, a Beirut resident and well known commodities trader who is a relative of Assad’s wife. Akhras could not immediately be reached for comment. In 2014, he was ordered to serve a 12-month jail term by Britain’s High Court for contempt of court due to breach of contract in a deal with U.S. agri group Archer Daniels Midland for food imports to Syria. Ship tracking data on Thomson Reuters Eikon showed two vessels carrying around 60,000 tonnes in total of raw sugar from Brazil were discharging at the Syrian port of Tartous. One Middle East trade source said a further three cargoes had arrived in Lebanon destined for the Syrian market. “The indications are that this is government-related business. With increased Russian military support of late, you would have to be comfortable to bring in cargoes,” the source said. “Raws vessels headed to Lebanon are for meeting Syrian refining demands.” A European trade source said he had seen the highest volumes for several months of raw sugar moving into both Lebanon and Syria, estimating annual raw sugar imports at some 100,000 to 150,000 tonnes for both countries. The London-based International Sugar Organization (ISO), forecast Syrian imports of both raw and refined sugar at 465,000 tonnes in October/September, unchanged year-on-year, with sugar consumption at 625,000 tonnes a year. The five-year conflict has taken its toll on Syria’s trade and the domestic sugar market, a situation complicated by the sanctions imposed on Assad. Western sanctions do not target humanitarian goods and food, although blacklists on state companies that run ports as well as local shipping firms have made many international shippers and transporters nervous of falling foul of regulations. “The sanctions issue makes marine underwriters cautious,” said Mark Hue Williams, global head of transportation with leading insurance broker Willis Group. “The quality of vessels going into Syria is likely to be lower due to the sanctions and current military activity - making the risk less attractive.”