Saudi Arabia's top diplomat lands in Syria in new sign of support
Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan on Saturday arrived in Damascus for cooperation talks, in a fresh sign of the oil-wealthy monarchy's support to Syria's new leaders.
Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, hosted a meeting in Riyadh between US President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, marking the first encounter between the leaders of the two countries in 25 years.
During his trip to Saudi Arabia, Trump announced the lifting of all US sanctions on Syria.
Following his arrival in Damascus with a high-level economic delegation, bin Farhan met al-Sharaa and reiterated Saudi support for the war-shattered country.
During the visit, the Saudi officials will hold talks with their Syrian counterparts with the aim of supporting Syria's economy, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Bin Farhan said on Saturday in Damascus that Saudi Arabia and Qatar would jointly offer financial support for public sector workers in Syria. He did not give further details.
Last month, the two energy-rich Gulf countries said they would settle Syria's outstanding arrears with the World Bank Group, amounting to some $15 million.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been major supporters of Syria's new leadership since the fall of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December.
Al-Assad, who governed Syria for more than two decades, was overthrown by an Islamist-led rebel alliance commanded by al-Sharaa.
Syria's new leadership has since sought to garner world recognition and economic support to rebuild the country.
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