Saudi Arabia welcomes European and Middle Eastern diplomats on Sunday to discuss Syria, where foreign capitals hope for a return to stability after the fall of Bashar al-Assad.
“There will be two meetings. The first between Arab states. The second between Arab states and other countries”, including France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Turkey and Spain, as well as than the United Nations, a Saudi official who requested anonymity told AFP on Saturday.
This meeting is being held at a time when the transitional authorities led by the country’s new leader, Ahmad el-Chareh, are calling for a lifting of international sanctions hitting Syria.
Western powers, notably the United States and the European Union, had imposed sanctions on the government of Bashar al-Assad due to the repression of popular demonstrations in 2011, which sparked the civil war.
After 13 years of a war that left more than half a million dead, ravaged the economy and forced millions to flee, including to Europe, rebels led by the radical Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the former Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda, ousted Bashar al-Assad from power on December 8.
The transitional government that was installed in the aftermath has since been pushing for the lifting of international sanctions, but many capitals, including Washington, have said they are waiting to see how the new authorities will exercise their power before deciding.
– The question of sanctions –
The head of diplomacy of the European Union, Kaja Kallas, declared on Friday that the 27 could “gradually” relax their sanctions “provided that tangible progress is made”, particularly on the protection of minorities.
Sunday’s discussions will notably focus on the level of support to be given to the new administration and a possible lifting of sanctions, the Saudi official confirmed.
Saudi Arabia severed ties with Assad’s government in 2012 and then supported rebel groups trying to oust him from power.
But in 2023, Riyadh restored its relations with Syria and worked for the return of Damascus to the Arab League, putting an end to its diplomatic isolation.
The wealthy Gulf kingdom has sent food, shelter and medical aid to Syria this month.
Beyond this aid, Riyadh is now studying ways to support the transition.
“This summit sends the message that Saudi Arabia wants to assert itself at the head of regional efforts aimed at supporting the reconstruction of Syria,” underlines researcher Anna Jacobs of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington.
“But the big question is how much time and resources Saudi Arabia will devote to these efforts, and what is possible as long as many sanctions remain in place,” she added.
– Saudi “influence” –
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and her Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, confirmed their participation in the meeting in Riyadh, which is a continuation of previous discussions held in December in Jordan, according to the Saudi official.
The outgoing US Deputy Secretary of State, John Bass, will also participate.
Mr. Bass will arrive from Turkey, where he stressed “the importance of regional stability, of preventing Syria from being used as a base for terrorism and of ensuring the lasting defeat” of the jihadist group Islamic State, according to the State Department.
Saudi Arabia is taking a more cautious stance towards the new Syrian authorities than other countries like Turkey and Qatar, which were the first to reopen their embassies in Damascus, underlines Umer Karim, researcher on Syria at the University of Birmingham.
Nevertheless, Riyadh is “positively observing” Syria’s new leaders and looking to see if they can bring stability and “control the most extreme elements in their ranks”, he added.
For Anna Jacobs, Sunday’s meeting “gives Riyadh an opportunity to increase its influence with the new Syrian government and cultivate greater influence in a country where Turkey and Qatar now have more influence.”
