At an official Saudi invitation, and on the eve of the Gulf Cooperation Council meeting in the presence of Iraq, Egypt and Jordan, devoted to discussing the possibility of Syria returning to the League of Arab States, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Faisal Al-Miqdad, landed in the city of Jeddah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, on a visit that is the first for a foreign minister in nearly 12 years. .
Minister Mekdad’s visit was a reflection of the rapid developments taking place in the region, and the continuous contacts for Syria’s return to the Arab League, and revealed the extent of the political rapprochement between Damascus and Riyadh, as this visit will constitute an additional step on the road to Syria’s return to the Arab League.
Al-Miqdad arrived in Saudi Arabia on a working visit, at the invitation of the Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, and aims, according to the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to hold discussions on bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries, and issues of common concern.
In turn, the Saudi Foreign Ministry indicated that the talks will deal with efforts to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis that preserves Syria’s unity, security and stability, facilitate the return of Syrian refugees to their homeland, and secure the delivery of humanitarian aid to the affected areas in Syria.
In addition to Minister Mekdad, the Syrian delegation includes Assistant Foreign Minister Ayman Soussan, Director of the Executive Support Department Jamal Najeeb and Yazan al-Hakim from the minister’s office.
In parallel, and prior to the official meeting of the foreign ministers of the two countries, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan discussed by phone with the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General of the United Nations to Syria, Geir Pedersen, ways to find a political solution to the Syrian crisis and the efforts he is making in this regard.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry said: Bin Farhan affirmed, during the call, “the Kingdom’s keenness to make all efforts to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis that preserves Syria’s unity, security, stability, and Arab affiliation, and achieves goodness and development for its people.”
Al-Miqdad’s visit to Saudi Arabia, which declared the end of the era of political estrangement between the two countries, was accompanied by a new Tunisian-Syrian step in terms of the return of embassies between the two sides. Opening its embassy in Tunisia and appointing an ambassador at its head.
The statement stressed that, out of keenness on both sides to restore the Syrian-Tunisian relations to their normal path, consultation and coordination between the foreign ministers of the two countries continues in order to consecrate the long-standing fraternal ties that unite Syria and Tunisia, and uphold the values of solidarity and synergy between them, and for the good and interest of their two brotherly peoples.
At the same time, the spokesman for the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ahmed Al-Sahhaf, confirmed that his country still supports the return of Syria to its Arab surroundings.
Al-Sahhaf said in a statement: “Iraq was and still supports Syria’s return to its seat in the Arab League,” stressing that “the integration of the Arab house reflects positively on its parties.”
In the meantime, Minister Mekdad will start an Arab tour next Saturday that will lead him to Algeria, where he will land first to meet its senior officials. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates will also visit Tunisia, where he will hold discussions related to the development of bilateral relations, and he will complete his Arab tour with a visit to Iraq, where he will attend developments related to the situation in Syria and other destinations. The Arab view towards Syria’s return to the League of Arab States, in addition to strengthening bilateral relations as main topics in the foreign minister’s talks in the capitals of the three Arab countries, according to follow-up sources with whom Al-Watan spoke.