A delegation of senior Arab parliamentarians has recently visited Damascus to meet with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, in a sign of the thawing of ties between Syria and the Arab world after more than a decade of isolation. The delegation, which was part of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union, was composed of heads of the Iraqi, Jordanian, Palestinian, Libyan, Egyptian and Emirati houses of representatives, as well as representatives from Oman and Lebanon.
The visit is a result of the outpouring of support from Arab states following two devastating earthquakes that hit Syria on February 6th, killing more than 5,900 people. Donors included Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, who both supported rebels seeking to overthrow al-Assad in the early years of the conflict.
Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry is set to travel to Damascus on Monday in the first visit by an Egyptian foreign minister since 2011. This follows a phone call between Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and al-Assad on February 7th, as well as Jordan’s foreign minister making his first trip to Damascus on February 15th.
Al-Assad then travelled to Oman on February 20th, his first time leaving Syria since the quake. Prior to this, he had rarely left Syria during the war, travelling only to close allies Russia and Iran. His 2022 visit to the UAE was his first trip to an Arab state since the 2011 outbreak of war.
The meeting between al-Assad and the Arab parliamentarians is a further indication of the warming ties between Syria and its neighbours in the region. Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi expressed his hope that Syria will be able to return to its Arab environment. The visit is a positive step towards restoring diplomatic relations between Syria and its neighbours and rebuilding trust between them.