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Rabat – Syria’s de facto leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, arrived in Saudi Arabia today on a two-day trip to discuss prospects of relations between the two countries and the future of war-torn Syria.
This marks Sharaa’s first official trip abroad since he was named president of Syria’s interim government.
The trip will see discussions over bolstering diplomatic ties between Syria and Saudi Arabia, and the visit marks a shift in Damascus’s foreign policy.
Analysts and observers say that having Saudi Arabia as the first destination for an official visit abroad signals Syria’s shift away from Tehran as its historical regional ally.
The last time the two countries met was when the Saudi foreign minister visited Damascus on January 24.
On January 29, Sharaa was officially named de facto president for a transitional phase in Syria, tasked with forming a temporary legislative council to perform duties until the adoption of a new constitution.
Efforts to lift sanctions on Syria
Since the rebel group, led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), toppled the Bashar al-Assad regime on December 8, 2024, the interim government has been investing efforts to lift international sanctions imposed on Syria.
Syrian officials are pleading for a sanctions lift to help the war-torn country reconstruct, revive the economy, and bring back quality of life to desperate Syrians.
Saudi Arabia has shown lively engagement towards this endeavor, holding talks with various European countries and the US. Saudi’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Faisal bin Farhan said following his last meeting with Sharaa that the Gulf country is engaged in “active dialogue with all relevant countries, whether the United States or the European Union, and we are hearing positive messages.”
On separate instances but along a similar trend, the US and EU pledged a mild lift of sanctions imposed on Syria earlier this month.
The US announced on January 7 that it has decided to alleviate some of its imposed sanctions on Syria, a move that the US Treasury Department described as a step “to support the Syrian people as they build a more hopeful, secure, and peaceful future.”
On January 27, the European foreign affairs ministers approved a roadmap for lifting sanctions step by step over the period of one year, starting with the banking, energy, and transport sectors.
