Damascus, Riyadh to promote Arab unity
The president and the crown prince welcomed the normalization of relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia
Syrian President Bashar Assad and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud met on Friday to discuss the outcome of the Jeddah summit of the Arab League, Assad’s office said in a statement.
“President al-Assad and Prince Mohammed noted the positive atmosphere in the inter-Arab relations, and the tendency towards collective actions that was noticeable during the summit,” the documenpromote
“The leaders of the two brotherly nations agreed that Damascus and Riyadh will continue to promote and strengthen the Arab unity.”
The president and the crown prince welcomed the normalization of relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia, adding that it would have a positive impact on stability in the region.
In his address to the Jeddah summit on Friday, Assad called upon Arab nations to draft a joint strategy for countering present-day threats and foreign interference. In his opinion, the Arab world “now has a unique opportunity to improve the situation in the region, for the sake of peace, development and prosperity.”
The Syrian leader attended the top-level meeting of Arab states for the first time since 2010. The Council of the Arab League ruled to resume Syria’s participation in the regional organization on May 7.
Syria’s membership in the Arab League was suspended in November 2011 following escalation of the armed conflict in that country.
Failing to force the Syrian authorities into concessions in favor of the opposition, most of the Arab countries recalled their ambassadors from Damascus and joined the economic boycott of Syria.
After the devastating February 6 earthquake in Syria and Turkey, the majority of Arab countries opted for rapprochement with Damascus, sending significant humanitarian aid to the disaster-hit country.
he Arab League, formerly known as the League of Arab States, was set up on March 22, 1945 in Cairo by seven Arab nations, namely Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Transjordan (now Jordan), and Yemen. Now, the organization has 22 member states.
