Syria talks being held in Riyadh with Western and regional participation
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Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani (left) with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan 12.
PHOTO: REUTERS
RIYADH – Foreign ministers and top diplomats from Western and Middle Eastern countries are meeting Syria’s new foreign minister in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Jan 12 at the first such regional meeting on Syria since President Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December 2024
German Foreign Affairs Minister Annalena Baerbock arrived in Riyadh on the morning of Jan 12 ahead of the meeting with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan Al-Shibani.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy was also expected to join the talks, according to a statement issued by the UK Foreign Office.
Foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey were all in Riyadh for the meeting on Jan 12, plus envoys from the European Union and the US. Other top Arab and Western officials are also expected to attend.
A lightning rebel offensive overthrew Mr Assad on Dec 8, and Islamist rebels Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which led the advance, set up a caretaker government that appointed Mr Shibani as foreign minister.
“Discussions in Riyadh will be Arab-led and focus on the next steps the international community can take to support the interim Syrian authorities, including mechanisms to hold the Assad regime to account for the war crimes they perpetrated against the Syrian people,” the British statement said.
The meeting is the first to include both Syria’s new rulers and top Western officials and will be led by Saudi Arabia.
It follows a meeting top diplomats from the US, UK, France, Germany and the EU held on Syria in Rome on Jan 9 and a landmark meeting Jordan hosted in December 2024 when regional players signalled concerns over Syria’s new Islamist rulers and what they need to do to get international recognition.
The conference on Jan 12 comes as Syria’s new administration urged a lifting of sanctions by the West to help international funding flow to Damascus.
Germany, Italy and France have in recent days pushed for EU sanctions on Syria to be relaxed, but a final decision could come only from the entire bloc.
The US on Jan 6 issued a sanctions exemption for transactions with governing institutions in Syria for six months after the end of Mr Assad’s rule to try to ease the flow of humanitarian assistance. REUTERS
