DAMASCUS: Egypt’s foreign minister met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Monday in the first visits to Syria and Turkiye by a top Egyptian diplomat in a decade.

Assad has benefited from an outpouring of Arab support since devastating earthquakes hit his country and neighbouring Turkiye this month, helping to ease the diplomatic isolation he has faced over Syria’s civil war which began in 2011.

“The goal of the visit is primarily humanitarian, and to pass on our solidarity from the leadership, the government and the people of Egypt to the people of Syria,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told reporters in Damascus.

Egypt was looking forward to providing more quake assistance in full coordination with the Syrian government after already having donated some 1,500 tonnes, Shoukry added, standing alongside Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad.

“When the foreign minister of Egypt comes to Damascus, he comes to his home, his people, and his country,” Mekdad said.

The Arab League suspended Syria in 2011 over the government’s deadly crackdown on protests, and many US-allied Arab states backed the opposition seeking to topple Assad.

But a number of Arab states, most prominently the United Arab Emirates, have shifted approach towards normalising ties in recent years, after Assad defeated his insurgent enemies across much of the country helped by Iran and Russia.

Shoukry did not respond to reporters’ questions on whether Egypt would support lifting the Arab League’s suspension of Syria.

­­­­­­­Ties between Syria and Egypt were briefly cut during the Muslim Brotherhood-led government of President Mohamed Mursi.

Egypt reopened its embassy in Syria in 2013 after the army removed Mursi from power, but kept Assad at arm’s length. Shoukry met Mekdad in 2021 on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Following the quake, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi spoke with Assad by phone for the first time and on Sunday a delegation of parliamentarians from around the region, including Egypt’s parliament speaker, met Assad in Damascus.

Published in Dawn, February 28th, 2023

Opinion

Editorial

Military option
Updated 21 Nov, 2024

Military option

While restoring peace is essential, addressing Balochistan’s socioeconomic deprivation is equally important.
HIV/AIDS disaster
21 Nov, 2024

HIV/AIDS disaster

A TORTUROUS sense of déjà vu is attached to the latest health fiasco at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital. The largest...
Dubious pardon
21 Nov, 2024

Dubious pardon

IT is disturbing how a crime as grave as custodial death has culminated in an out-of-court ‘settlement’. The...
Islamabad protest
Updated 20 Nov, 2024

Islamabad protest

As Nov 24 draws nearer, both the PTI and the Islamabad administration must remain wary and keep within the limits of reason and the law.
PIA uncertainty
20 Nov, 2024

PIA uncertainty

THE failed attempt to privatise the national flag carrier late last month has led to a fierce debate around the...
T20 disappointment
20 Nov, 2024

T20 disappointment

AFTER experiencing the historic high of the One-day International series triumph against Australia, Pakistan came...