By Aryn Baker and Euan Ward
High-ranking Arab diplomats paid a visit to Syria’s capital, Damascus, on Monday, marking a continuation of diplomatic gestures from the international community as Syria gradually steps out from years of isolation under President Bashar Assad.
The delegation that included ministers from Jordan and Qatar came just two weeks after the overthrow of Assad, indicating that Arab countries are keen to improve ties with a nation that had long been seen as a pariah and a catalyst for instability in the region.
Syria’s appointed leader, Ahmad al-Sharaa, engaged in “extensive discussions” with Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, in Damascus on Monday, as reported by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry. Shortly afterward, Qatar’s state minister for foreign affairs, Mohammed al-Khulaifi, arrived in Syria to confer with its new leadership, according to the Qatari Foreign Ministry.
They were amongst the initial high-ranking Arab diplomats to visit Syria following the recent fall of Assad due to the rebel coalition led by al-Sharaa. Prominent Arab diplomats had pledged during a meeting in Jordan this month to “promote a peaceful transition process” in Syria.
Many Arab nations severed relations with Assad’s administration due to his brutal suppression of pro-democracy demonstrators in 2011 during the Arab Spring, which catalyzed a civil war. However, after years of supporting anti-Assad factions, some of Assad’s former critics have shifted their perspectives in recent years, believing that increased involvement may foster greater stability in the region.
Last year, the Saudi government in Riyadh extended an invitation to Assad for the Arab League summit, following a suspension of Syria’s membership that had lasted over a decade. Nevertheless, this approach didn’t yield the intended results, according to Julien Barnes-Dacey, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at the European Council on Foreign Relations. Assad persisted with his harsh measures, leading Arab nations to seize the opportunity to begin anew with different leadership in Syria.
“The Arab states perceive more potential now than they did after a year of engagement with Assad that produced absolutely nothing,” Barnes-Dacey stated.
Initially, there were concerns due to al-Sharaa’s past affiliations with al-Qaida, which remains a destabilizing influence in both the Arab region and the West, according to Barnes-Dacey. Yet, al-Sharaa’s consistent assertions that his administration would be pragmatic, inclusive, and respectful of the nation’s diverse religious and ethnic communities have garnered positive responses.
“Regional countries will likely embrace that,” he noted.
The arrival of Arab delegations signifies a potential significant realignment in regional relationships, as stated by Paul Salem, vice president for international engagement at the Middle East Institute in Washington. Despite Syria being a predominantly Sunni Muslim nation like most Arab countries, the Assad regime historically played a crucial role in bolstering Iran’s regional dominance, which is mainly Shiite. Arab nations now see a chance to alter that dynamic.
“Arab countries have endeavored to reintegrate Syria into the Arab community for the last 45 years, since the Iran-Iraq war,” Salem mentioned. It is not surprising, he continued, that Qatar is assuming a leadership role.
As one of the few Arab nations that resisted reconciling with Assad, Qatar’s envoy al-Khulaifi’s visit was a strong message of backing for the new government. During a press conference post-meeting, al-Khulaifi remarked that “Syria and its citizens require support during this critical period.”
Al-Sharaa acknowledged Qatar’s ongoing assistance for the Syrian population throughout the conflict and expressed gratitude for Qatar’s willingness to invest in Syria’s energy sector, ports, and airports.
Accompanying the Qatari delegation was a technical team from Qatar Airways, which aimed to evaluate whether Damascus International Airport was ready to resume operations after being closed during the rebel offensive, as stated by the Foreign Ministry.
After his discussions with al-Sharaa, Safadi conveyed that Jordan’s objective was to “support and assist the Syrian populace.” He also raised topics of immediate importance to Jordan, such as the presence of nearly 620,000 registered Syrian refugees in his country, asserting that their return must be “voluntary and secure.” Safadi highlighted also the matters of terrorism, arms trafficking, and drug smuggling, which “have affected us in Jordan.”
The foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, held talks with Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, Syria’s newly appointed foreign minister. In their conversation, bin Zayed emphasized his nation’s “supportive position” toward a “comprehensive and inclusive transitional phase.” The UAE has traditionally viewed the rebel movement with suspicion, according to Barnes-Dacey, and was the first among Arab nations to re-establish relations with the Assad regime back in 2018.
For his meetings with both the Jordanian and Qatari delegations on Monday, al-Sharaa opted for a suit and tie instead of his usual military fatigues, signaling the new leader’s intent to refine his image and restore connections between Syria and the international community.
On Sunday, al-Sharaa also met with Turkey’s foreign minister, Hakan Fidan, and a notable Lebanese Druze leader, Walid Jumblatt. Like the visitors on Monday, these Turkish and Lebanese representatives presented their respective needs while framing them as offers of assistance.
With Turkey hosting 3.6 million Syrian refugees, it too seeks a return to stability in order to facilitate their eventual repatriation. However, Turkey also aims to foster a Syria more aligned with its regional goals. Many of the rebel factions that helped oust Assad were financially supported by Turkey, and although al-Sharaa’s faction was not among them, Turkey intends to leverage their influence for enhanced regional sway, Barnes-Dacey asserted.
As a Lebanese politician and leader of the Druze religious minority—which encompasses about a million members across Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Jordan—Jumblatt was less interested in gaining influence and more focused on obtaining reassurances.
The Assad regime, established by Assad’s father, Hafez Assad, in 1971, has a lengthy history of meddling in Lebanese affairs and was implicated in the assassination of Jumblatt’s father, along with the murders of former Prime Minister Rafic Hariri and numerous other influential Lebanese politicians over the past five decades.
In his dialogue with the Lebanese delegation, al-Sharaa acknowledged that Syria under the Assads had been a “source of fear and unease” for Lebanon, promising to cease his country’s “negative interference.”
