Syrian delegation visits Saudi Arabia for first foreign trip since ousting of Bashar al-Assad

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A high-level Syrian delegation led by Foreign Minister Assad al-Shaibani arrived in Riyadh on his first official visit abroad since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad by rebels last month.

The group, which includes Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra and intelligence chief Anas Khattab, was met by the kingdom’s Deputy Foreign Minister Walid Elkheiji at Riyadh airport late Wednesday, the official Saudi news agency reported.

“Through this first visit in the history of Free Syria, we seek to open a new and bright page in Syrian-Saudi relations, befitting the long shared history between the two countries,” Shaibani told X.

Saudi Arabia has welcomed Assad several times in the past two years since he first began dealing with the dictator since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, after the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham seized Damascus on December 8.

Arab countries are worried about further conflict and political instability in the region after the devastating events wars in Gaza and Lebanon, while the Gulf states also want to reduce the smuggling of Captagon and other illegal drugs originating in Syria.

The visit, at the official invitation of the kingdom, takes place at a time when Saudi Arabia has sent three planes of humanitarian aid. Syriaincluding food, lodging and medical supplies.

Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Abdullah al-Yahya and Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary-General Jassim al-Budaiwi met with Syria’s de facto ruler Ahmed al-Sharaa on Monday.

Yahya called on the international community to review the sanctions imposed on Syria, adding that the Persian Gulf countries are urgently working to send more aid to Syria.

The visit “shows our commitment to open a new page of constructive regional cooperation. . and we also value the response of the new administration in Syria to these efforts,” Yahya said during a press conference in Damascus.

HTS is designated a terrorist organization by the US, UN and others, although Washington and other Western capitals have taken tentative steps to cooperate with the new rulers.

Qatar, which has previously resisted efforts to restore the Assad regime and return it to the Arab army, also sent a high-level delegation to Syria last week.

Syria’s new leader, Shaara, who previously used the name “Abu Mohammad al-Jolani,” said in an interview with Saudi Arabia News Channel last week that Saudi Arabia “will definitely play a big role in Syria’s future.”

He added that there was a “huge investment opportunity” as the country sought to rebuild its economy after more than a decade of devastating civil war.

In the same interview, he gave the first indication of a possible timeline for the country’s political transition, saying it would take up to three years to draft a new constitution and up to four years to hold the first elections.