Syrian leader to visit Saudi Arabia on first official visit
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa is heading to Saudi Arabia on Sunday in his first official visit where he will meet with top Saudi officials, according to his office.
“President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani will meet in the Saudi capital Riyadh with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman,” said a statement from Sharaa’s office.
Sharaa was named Syria’s interim president on Wednesday, over a month after a coalition led by his Islamist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) overthrew Bashar al-Assad’s regime and ended decades of Baathist rule.
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman and the crown prince both congratulated Sharaa on his new role.
The kingdom has also been providing humanitarian aid to Syria.
In late January, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan visited Damascus and said in a presser with Shaibani that the kingdom is seeking to help war-ravaged Syria lift international sanctions.
Last month, Shaibani visited the Saudi capital on his first trip abroad as top diplomat, calling it a “new and bright page” in Damascus-Riyadh relations.
Saudi Arabia restored diplomatic ties with Assad’s Syria last year and supported its return to the Arab League, 11 years after Riyadh severed ties with Damascus and backed Syrian rebels during the onset of the country’s brutal civil war.
“President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani will meet in the Saudi capital Riyadh with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman,” said a statement from Sharaa’s office.
Sharaa was named Syria’s interim president on Wednesday, over a month after a coalition led by his Islamist Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) overthrew Bashar al-Assad’s regime and ended decades of Baathist rule.
Saudi Arabia’s King Salman and the crown prince both congratulated Sharaa on his new role.
The kingdom has also been providing humanitarian aid to Syria.
In late January, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan visited Damascus and said in a presser with Shaibani that the kingdom is seeking to help war-ravaged Syria lift international sanctions.
Last month, Shaibani visited the Saudi capital on his first trip abroad as top diplomat, calling it a “new and bright page” in Damascus-Riyadh relations.
Saudi Arabia restored diplomatic ties with Assad’s Syria last year and supported its return to the Arab League, 11 years after Riyadh severed ties with Damascus and backed Syrian rebels during the onset of the country’s brutal civil war.