On Tuesday, April 18, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan became the first high official from his country to visit Damascus since the war in Syria broke out in 2011. Farhan met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and discussed the process of Syria’s reintegration into regional politics.
According to a report by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), Farhan conveyed his country’s support for Syria’s attempts to “preserve its territorial integrity and restore stability and security, along with creating an environment conducive to the return of refugees and displaced persons.”
Farhan’s visit comes a week after Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad made a similar official visit to Saudi Arabia.
Farhan claimed earlier this month that a consensus was emerging among Arab countries over Syria’s reintegration into regional politics. Last week, delegates from nine Arab countries met in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to discuss the issue. While reports indicate that the meeting was inconclusive, Saudi Arabia has been pushing to formally invite Syria for the upcoming Arab League summit in Riyadh next month.
Saudi Arabia and most other Arab countries had severed their relationships with Syria following the outbreak of the war in the country in 2011. Syria’s membership in the 22-member Arab League was also suspended in November 2011.
The war in Syria has killed over half a million people and displaced almost half of the country’s pre-war population of around 20 million. The war and the occupation of its resource rich regions in the east by the US forces, along with sanctions imposed by the US and its allies, have deterred reconstruction efforts of the Syrian government, which survived the war with the help of Russia and Iran.
Saudi Arabia and some other Arab countries had joined the Western efforts to remove Bashar al-Assad from power and have been accused of supporting the anti-Assad forces in the country with weapons and money.
The restoration of relationships with the Arab countries is expected to bring financial and political support to Syria, and may mitigate the effects of war and sanctions to some extent.
Diplomatic efforts to reintegrate Syria into the Arab world have gathered pace since the Chinese-mediated rapprochement between regional heavy weights Iran and Saudi Arabia in March. The efforts were also expedited following the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria in February. More than 6,000 Syrians were killed, mostly in the country’s north-west.
On the day of Farhan’s visit, Syrian Foreign Minister Mekdad was in Tunisian capital Tunis to meet with President Kais Saied. Mekdad and Saied proclaimed the normalization of the Syria-Tunisia diplomatic relationship and both countries have decided to reopen their embassies soon.
