 "In this photo provided by the Saudi Ministry of Media, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman greets Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, left, during his arrival at the royal palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025. (Saudi Ministry of Media via AP)")
Syria’s transitional President Ahmed al-Sharaa met Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Sunday in his first foreign trip as Syrian leader, Saudi state news agency SPA reported.
Live TV footage showed Sharaa shaking hands with the crown prince in the Saudi capital before sitting down for talks.
The state-run Saudi Press Agency described their discussions as examining ways to “support the security and stability of sisterly Syria.” Syria’s state-run SANA news agency quoted al-Sharaa as saying they “worked on raising the level of communication and cooperation in all areas, especially those humanitarian and economic.”
Saudi Arabia had been among the Arab nations that poured money into insurgent groups that tried to topple President Bashar Assad after Syria’s 2011 Arab Spring protests turned into a bloody crackdown. However, its groups found themselves beaten back as Assad, supported by Iran and Russia, fought the war into a stalemate in Syria.
That changed with the December lightning offensive led by al-Sharaa’s Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. The group was once affiliated with al-Qaida but has since denounced its former ties.
Al-Sharaa and HTS have carefully managed their public image in the time since, with the interim president favoring an olive-colored military look similar to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, appointing women to roles and trying to maintain ties to Syria’s Christian and Shiite Alawite populations.
That also includes keeping both Iran and Russia largely at arms’ length as well. Iran has yet to reopen its embassy in Damascus, which had been a key node in running operations through its self-described “Axis of Resistance,” including Assad’s Syria, Lebanon’s Hezbollah militia and other partners. Iranian state media noted the trip to Saudi Arabia, a longtime regional rival with which it struck a Chinese-mediated détente in 2023, without acknowledging its own challenges in Syria.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsRussia, meanwhile, would like to maintain access to air and sea bases it has in Syria, but took in Assad when he fled Syria during the advance.
With inputs from agencies