BEIRUT/RIYADH (Reuters) – Syria and Saudi Arabia have agreed to reopen their embassies after severing diplomatic relations more than a decade ago, three sources familiar with the matter said, in a step that would represent a leap forward in the return of Damascus. to the fold of the Arabs.
A pro-Damascus regional source said that contacts between Riyadh and Damascus gained momentum after a historic agreement to restore relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the main ally of President Bashar al-Assad.
Restoring relations between Riyadh and Damascus will represent the most important development so far in the moves of Arab countries to normalize relations with Assad, who was shunned by many Western and Arab countries after the outbreak of the civil war in Syria in 2011.
A second regional source allied with Damascus told Reuters that the two governments were “preparing to reopen the embassies after Eid al-Fitr,” a Muslim holiday in the second half of April.
The decision came as a result of talks in Saudi Arabia with a senior Syrian intelligence official, according to one of the regional sources and a diplomat in the Gulf.
The Saudi government liaison office, the Saudi Foreign Ministry and the Syrian government did not respond to requests for comment.
Saudi state television later confirmed that talks were underway with the Syrian Foreign Ministry to resume consular services, citing a Saudi foreign ministry official.
The sources spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject.
The seemingly sudden breakthrough may indicate the role the agreement between Tehran and Riyadh may play in other crises in the region, as their rivalry has fueled conflicts including the war in Syria.
The United States and several of its regional allies, including Saudi Arabia and Sunni-led Qatar, have supported some of the Syrian rebels. Thanks to Shiite Iran and Russia, Assad was able to defeat the rebellion in most of Syria.
The United States, an ally of Saudi Arabia, has opposed moves by countries in the region to normalize relations with Assad, citing his government’s brutality during the conflict and the need to see progress toward a political solution.
When asked about the rapprochement, a spokesperson for the US State Department said that “the US position on normalization has not changed” and that he would not encourage other countries to normalize relations with Assad.
Arab League suspension
The United Arab Emirates, another strategic partner of the United States, has led the way in normalizing contacts with Assad, and recently hosted him in Abu Dhabi with his wife.
But Saudi Arabia has been treading more cautiously.
The Gulf diplomat said the senior Syrian intelligence official “stayed for days” in Riyadh and an agreement was reached to reopen embassies “very soon”.
A regional source identified the official as Hossam Louka, who heads the Syrian Intelligence Committee, and said the talks included security on Syria’s border with Jordan and smuggling of Captagon, an amphetamine for which there is a thriving market in the Persian Gulf, from Syria. .
Syria was suspended from the Arab League in 2011 in response to Assad’s brutal crackdown on protests.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said earlier this month that contact with Assad could lead to Syria returning to the Arab League, but it is too early at the moment to discuss such a move.
The diplomat said the Syrian-Saudi talks could pave the way for a vote to lift the suspension of Syria’s membership during the next Arab summit, expected to be held in Saudi Arabia in April.
The United Arab Emirates reopened its embassy in Damascus in 2018, arguing that Arab countries needed more presence in resolving the Syrian conflict.
And while Assad is enjoying renewed contacts with Arab countries that once shunned him, US sanctions remain a major complicating factor for countries seeking to expand trade relations.
Additional reporting by Maya Jubaili. Editing by Tom Perry and Alex Richardson
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