Saudi FM in Syria for first visit since Assad's ouster

Prince Faisal bin Farhan was received by Syria's Islamist interim leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, who is eyeing investments from wealthy Gulf states to rebuild the war-torn country.

The Saudi diplomat flew to Damascus from Beirut, an AFP correspondent said, following meetings on Thursday with Lebanon's new leadership.

During a press conference Friday with his Syrian counterpart, bin Farhan said Saudi Arabia was standing by Syria, pointing to "the importance of accelerating the lifting and freezing of all sanctions".

He added that Riyadh is engaged in "active dialogue with all relevant countries, whether the United States or the European Union, and we are hearing positive messages".

Washington had already eased sanctions on Syria following Assad's overthrow, with the EU widely expected to follow suit when it addresses the issue at its next foreign ministers' meeting on Monday.

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, who was in Riyadh earlier in January, said the lifting of sanctions would allow for "the opening of new channels for investment and trade", as well as rebuilding infrastructure and creating jobs.

The last time bin Farhan was in Damascus, in April 2023, he met Assad in a landmark visit that ended more than a decade of strained relations.

Riyadh was key to the Assad government's return to the Arab League, after severing ties in 2012 over his crackdown on pro-democracy protests that sparked the civil war.

Now, Syria's new leadership is eager for Saudi investment to help rebuild the country's war-shattered infrastructure and boost its economy.
'Large role in Syria's future'
Analysts said Riyadh had hoped to pull Assad away from Iran and encourage him to curb the illicit captagon trade, Syria's biggest export, mostly destined for Gulf countries.

Their effort bore little success.

Production of the amphetamine-like stimulant was rampant in Syria before Assad fled, and the country's new authorities have announced finding multiple factories and warehouses storing tens of millions of pills.

The first foreign visit by the new government was to Saudi Arabia, which has been providing humanitarian aid.

During that visit earlier this month, Shaibani said he hoped to open a "new, bright page", as he headed a delegation that included Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra and intelligence chief Anas Khattab.

Last month, Sharaa told Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television that Riyadh "will certainly have a large role in Syria's future", pointing to "a big investment opportunity for all neighbouring countries".

He told the broadcaster that he was born in Saudi Arabia, where his father worked at the time, and lived there for the first few years of his life.

Also in December, a Saudi delegation met Sharaa in Damascus, a source close to the Saudi government told AFP.

Sharaa heads the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) that led the rebel offensive that toppled Assad.

HTS has its roots in the former Syria branch of Al-Qaeda, but it broke ties with the jihadist network in 2016 and has sought to soften its image.