Arab, EU Diplomats In Saudi For Talks On Support For Syria
Sumaira FH Published January 12, 2025 | 01:30 PM
Riyadh, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 12th Jan, 2025) Top diplomats from the middle East and Europe were arriving in the Saudi capital on Sunday to discuss Syria, as world powers push for stability after the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
Saudi Arabia, the Middle East's biggest economy, is seeking to increase its influence in Syria after Islamist-led rebels toppled Assad last month, analysts say.
The talks on Sunday will unfold in two sessions: the first will bring together Arab officials, while the second will feature wider participation, including from Turkey, France, the European Union and the United Nations, a Saudi official told AFP on Saturday.
Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led the main rebel group in the alliance that overthrew Assad, is pushing for sanctions relief.
Western powers, including the United States and the European Union, imposed sanctions on Assad's government over his brutal crackdown on anti-government protests in 2011, which triggered the civil war.
More than 13 years of conflict have killed over half a million Syrians, left infrastructure destroyed and the people impoverished, while millions have fled their homes, including to Europe.
The European Union's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said on Friday that the 27-nation bloc could begin lifting sanctions if Syria's new rulers took steps to form an inclusive government that protected minorities.
Saudi Arabia cut ties with Assad's government in 2012 and had long openly championed his ouster. But in 2023 it hosted an Arab League meeting at which Assad was welcomed back into the regional fold.
This month the Gulf kingdom has sent food, shelter and medical supplies to Syria over land and by plane.
Riyadh is now negotiating how to support the war-struck country's transition beyond that.
"This summit sends the message that Saudi Arabia wants to take the lead on coordinating the regional effort to support Syria's recovery," said Anna Jacobs, non-resident fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington.
"But the big question is how much time and how many resources will Saudi Arabia devote to this effort? And what is possible with many of the sanctions remaining in place?"
